Israeli officials shocked at Trump’s Gaza ceasefire statement
US president’s remarks about nearing ceasefire deal ‘nothing more than political wishful thinking,� says officials
JERUSALEM/ISTANBUL
Israeli officials said they were surprised by US President Donald Trump's remarks that a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip was imminent, according to a report in the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
Unnamed officials familiar with the prisoner negotiations in Gaza said they were surprised by the statements, and there were no signs of a change in the positions of Hamas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. They said Trump's words were “nothing more than political wishful thinking.”
They said the US administration supports a comprehensive agreement that includes a ceasefire, the return of Israeli prisoners and an end to the war to pave the way for an expansion of normalization agreements in the region.
But at a news conference at the White House, American officials said they could not understand the basis for Trump's optimism when he said, “We think within the next week we're going to get a ceasefire.”
The officials noted that they had not been informed of any progress in prisoner exchange negotiations, but said behind-the-scenes contacts were continuing under the mediation of Qatar and Egypt, although talks had not yet led to any results or progress.
They denied reports of an alleged visit to the region by Trump's special representative Steve Witkoff, saying that no visit was planned.
Israeli officials believe Trump is trying to achieve a new political success by capitalizing on the momentum created by the end of the Israel-Iran conflict that was announced by the US president last week.
