WASHINGTON/DUBAI – US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace confirmed Thursday that Hamas agreed to a roadmap for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire, including a pledge to disarm under the US-backed plan brokered by Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey.
“The Roadmap represents a historic breakthrough,” the board said in a statement shared on X.
“For the first time, Hamas officially has committed to an actionable plan for relinquishing all its weapons, which will be followed by an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
“It holds the promise of delivering significant benefits to the people of Gaza, who have waited too long for a better future, and security to the people of Israel,” it said.
A Hamas source also told Reuters the “draft agreement” stipulates that heavy weapons would only be stored and kept under the control of a Palestinian administration, plus that the weapons cannot be transferred to Israel.
Trump claimed Israel is “very happy” about the disarmament deal his Board of Peace inked yesterday with Hamas. Senior Israeli officials asserted that Israel does not accept the proposal and will not carry out any withdrawals from Gaza as are required by the agreement.
Asked during a cabinet meeting whether the US has received any assurances from Israel that it will abide by the deal, Trump responds, “We do have an understanding with Israel.”
“Israel is very happy about it. Israel helped us, and they’ve been very good,” he said. “Most people said that would be a deal that would be undoable. Will it go through its ups and downs? It’s a very complex situation over there… But it’s a great breakthrough. Nobody’s ever thought that be possible to disarm Hamas.”
That shows you how much success we’re having with Iran, because five months ago, a deal like that would have been impossible,” he claims. “It’s a big step for the Middle East, and people are really impressed by it.”
Asked who Hamas will be giving its weapons to, Trump responds, “the Board of Peace.”
Technically, though, the US-backed Board of Peace disarmament proposal envisions Hamas handing over its weapons to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a new Palestinian technocratic government that is overseen by the Board of Peace.
Trump was asked how he plans to revive last month’s memorandum of understanding with Iran, which was supposed to end their war after three and a half months.
“We just want to win,” Trump tells reporters at a cabinet meeting, offering little indication that he’s interested in a diplomatic settlement or that he has a strategy for bringing the war to an end.
“We’re trying to be as nice as you can be in a situation like that,” he says before reiterating, They cannot have a nuclear weapon. Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.”
Asked if Americans should be prepared for the back-and-forth strikes between the US and Iran to continue, Trump responds, “A little bit.”
“It would be foolish to say no. You always have to keep your guard up.
Asked about the status of talks with Iran, Trump claims Tehran always is interested in talking but constantly breaks its word.
As for whether he thinks it’s still possible to reach a deal with Iran, Trump responds, “I’m losing faith in them,” claiming they fired missiles at US troops in Jordan while the sides were in the middle of negotiations. Asked how many more strikes it will take in order to restore maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz, Trump responds, “You never know.”
“Most people would have given up by now… They haven’t, so I give them credit for that. They’re tough,” he adds.
Speaking in front of reporters at a cabinet meeting at Camp David, Trump claimed “Iran is doing very poorly,” rejecting mounting reports suggesting otherwise.
“They’re having a hard time. They’ve been very dishonest. They’ve been very dishonorable to deal with, but that makes no difference. They’re doing very, very poorly,” Trump claims.
He rejects the possibility that a cyber attack in Minnesota was caused by Iran, blaming “incompetence” in the state for what unfolded.
He notably makes no mention in his lengthy opening remarks about the deal his administration helped broker yesterday to disarm Hamas.
After he concludes speaking, cabinet members share remarks on what they’re working on, though, each uses the opportunity to praise Trump.
Speaking to reporters before his arrival at Camp David, Trump claimed the war “is going well.”
“All you can do is keep winning, then eventually something will happen,” he said.
Saudi Arabia is preparing for a military campaign against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, with reports indicating a land offensive is on the horizon as Riyadh works to rally a multinational naval coalition to secure the Red Sea.
Yemeni sources told The Guardian that Saudi troops are pulling back from eastern Yemen and redeploying to prepare for a ground push into the central governorate of al-Bayda, territory captured by the Houthis in 2020 and 2021.
The escalation comes as Saudi Arabia faces a Houthi blockade in the Red Sea and attacks against its energy infrastructure.
The Saudi defence ministry said representatives from 43 countries and the European Union attended an international meeting that discussed the proposed coalition to guard vessels passing through the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, Reuters reported.
Saudi-led coalition forces in Yemen also carried out airstrikes on July 24 against Houthi military sites in Hodeidah in response to attacks on Saudi-linked shipping in the Red Sea. The Houthis responded with retaliatory attacks.
The US military says the Iranian government’s claim that the Strait of Hormuz is closed is “false”.
“The Strait of Hormuz remains open for commercial vessel transit. Iran does not control it. Thousands of ships have sailed through the international waterway over the past four months,” the US military’s Central Command said in a post on X.
Earlier, Iran said it had stopped two vessels seeking to exit the Strait of Hormuz and added that four other tankers were turned back after its forces intervened.
Iran said it struck two tankers trying to pass through the strait of Hormuz under the escort of the US military as Donald Trump gathered his cabinet to discuss the stalling war and rising prices as midterm elections in the US loom.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Friday that the “non-compliant oil tankers … were struck and brought to a halt, while four other oil tankers quickly changed course and returned to their previous positions”. The military body said the ships had tried to pass through the strait via an “undeclared route” and under US aerial escort.
Iran and the US have said ships should pass through the strait via two competing routes, with Iran bombing ships that take the southern route, close to the coast of Oman, and the US bombing ships that violate its blockade of Iranian ships and ports.
