"It's Very Close"
Trump Considers Sunday Trip to Middle East as Hostage Negotiations Reach Tense Climax
With teams "making very good progress," President Donald Trump stated he may travel to the region as early as Sunday for the signing ceremony of a major agreement, as mediators push for a final breakthrough in the next 24 to 36 hours.
The indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas in Sharm el-Sheikh have entered a critical phase, with both Israeli and American officials expressing heightened optimism for a final breakthrough. Late Wednesday, President Donald Trump revealed he is considering a trip to the Middle East as a peace agreement appears imminent.
"I just finished conversations with the teams in the Middle East, both ours and others, regarding the possibility of a Middle East peace agreement," Trump said. "It's very close."
The President noted the teams are "making very good progress" and that the deal has "a good chance of happening." He then dropped a major hint about his involvement, stating, "I might be traveling there sometime toward the end of the week, maybe Sunday in fact, and we'll see."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that he anticipates the President would be interested in attending a signing ceremony, if circumstances allow. Rubio himself announced he would skip a foreign ministers' summit in Paris dedicated to the post-war "transition" in Gaza, saying, "I might need to go to the Middle East, things are moving very fast there and we might need to be there very soon."