UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomed the Israel-Hamas agreement on Wednesday to begin the initial phase of a US-brokered 20-point peace deal while urging all parties to \u201cabide fully by the terms of the agreement\u201d in a bid to end the suffering Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territory.<\/p>\n
\u201cI welcome the announcement of an agreement to secure a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza, based on the proposal put forward by President Donald J. Trump,\u201d he said in a statement issued at UN Headquarters in New York.<\/p>\n
Guterres said that the UN will support the full implementation of the agreement and has been ready to scale up delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza, that has been sitting on the borders of Jordan and Egypt.<\/p>\n
\u201cI urge all stakeholders to seize this momentous opportunity to establish a credible political path forward towards ending the occupation, recognizing the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, and achieving a two-state solution that enables Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe stakes have never been higher.\u201d<\/p>\n
More than 66,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, were killed in Israel\u2019s genocidal war, which began in Oct 2023.<\/p>\n
Earlier, President Trump told Reuters, the British news agency, that a Gaza hostages-for-ceasefire deal hammered out in Egypt represented \u201ca great day for the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe whole world has come together on this one, Israel, every country has come together. This has been a fantastic day,\u201d Trump told Reuters in a brief telephone interview.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a great day for the world. This is a wonderful day, a wonderful day for everybody,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
On its part, Hamas said it had reached an agreement to end the war in Gaza, saying the deal includes an Israeli withdrawal from the enclave and a hostage-prisoner exchange.<\/p>\n
Hamas called on President Trump and guarantor states to ensure Israel fully implements the ceasefire, it added in a statement.
\n\u201cWe highly appreciate the efforts of our brothers and mediators in Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, and we also value the efforts of U.S. President Donald Trump aimed at ending the war completely and achieving a full withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip,\u201d Hamas said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe call on President Trump, the guarantor states of the agreement, and all Arab, Islamic, and international parties to compel the occupation government to fully implement its obligations under the agreement and to prevent it from evading or delaying the implementation of what has been agreed upon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe salute our great people in the Gaza Strip, in Jerusalem and the West Bank, and throughout our homeland and the diaspora, who have demonstrated unparalleled honour, courage, and heroism \u2014 confronting the fascist occupation projects that targeted them and their national rights. These sacrifices and steadfast positions have thwarted the Israeli occupation\u2019s schemes of subjugation and displacement.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe affirm that the sacrifices of our people will not be in vain, and that we will remain true to our pledge \u2014 never abandoning our people\u2019s national rights until freedom, independence, and self-determination are achieved.\u201d<\/p>\n
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would convene the government on Thursday to approve the Gaza ceasefire agreement aimed at bringing home all the Israeli hostages.<\/p>\n
\u201cA great day for Israel,\u201d Netanyahu added in a statement following President Trump\u2019s announcement that a deal had been reached between Israel and Hamas to end the two-year war in Gaza.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomed the Israel-Hamas agreement on Wednesday to begin the initial phase of a US-brokered 20-point peace deal while urging all parties to \u201cabide fully by the terms of the agreement\u201d in a bid to end the suffering Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territory. \u201cI welcome the announcement of an agreement to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":507611,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-507600","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n