Ceasefire Lack of clarity as Trump says Israel ready to agree to 60-day truce

Donald Trump has claimed that Israel is ready to agree to a peace deal with Hamas as he seeks to broker a ceasefire in the Gaza war that has claimed almost 60,000 lives, but it is unclear what conditions specifically Israel has agreed to.

- Andrew Roth Washington Jason Burke Jerusalem

In a post on Truth Social on Tuesday night, the US president wrote: "Israel has agreed to the necessary conditions to finalize the 60 Day CEASEFIRE, during which time we will work with all parties to end the War."

Trump's previous claims that Israel was ready to end the war, including a ceasefire negotiated before his inauguration, have quickly broken down as both sides accused the other of violating agreements.

Hamas said yesterday that it was reviewing Trump's proposal for a 60-day ceasefire, while Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said any peace agreement would banish Hamas from the Gaza Strip permanently.

"There will not be a Hamas," Netanyahu said in his first public comments since Trump proposed the ceasefire talks on Tuesday. "We're not going back to that. It's over."

Hamas negotiators were expected to meet Egyptian and Qatari mediators in Cairo yesterday. Israel is not believed to have sent a delegation.

US officials have supported Israel's demand that Hamas no longer exist in Gaza as a non-negotiable in any ceasefire negotiations.