World leaders throw their weight behind Gaza ceasefire deal

World leaders gathered Monday in Egypt for a summit aimed at supporting the ceasefire reached in Gaza, ending the Israel-Hamas war and developing a long-term vision to rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory.

Before the summit co-chaired by Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sissi and U.S. President Donald Trump began, el-Sissi hailed Trump as the "only one" able to bring peace to the region.

More than 20 world leaders attended the summit, including King Abdullah of Jordan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the French president and the British prime minister.


Israel and Hamas have no direct contacts and were not expected to attend. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not travel to the meeting because of a Jewish holiday, his office said.

World leaders lined up to have their photos taken with Trump ahead of the meeting. Trump smiled and gave a thumbs-up to photographers.

El-Sissi's office said the summit aimed to "end the war" in Gaza and "usher in a new page of peace and regional stability" in line with Trump's vision.

In Israel, Trump urged the country's lawmakers to work toward peace. To the Palestinians, he said it was time to concentrate on building.

Ahead of the meeting, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said it was critical that Israel and Hamas fully implement the first phase of the ceasefire deal so that the parties, with international backing, can begin negotiations on the second phase.

Abdelatty said the success of Trump's vision for Mideast peace will depend on his continued commitment to the process, including applying pressure on the parties and deploying military forces as part of an international contingent expected to carry out peacekeeping duties in the next phase.