Egypt Working with Qatar, Turkey to Secure Hamas Approval for Gaza Peace Plan

Egypt’s foreign minister said on Thursday that the country is working closely with Qatar and Turkey to encourage Hamas to accept a peace initiative put forward by U.S. President Donald Trump, aimed at ending the nearly two-year-long war in Gaza. He cautioned that rejecting the deal could lead to further escalation.
While speaking at the French Institute of International Relations in Paris, Badr Abdelatty made clear that Hamas must give up its weapons and that Israel should not be provided with any justification to continue its military actions in the region.

“Let’s not give any excuse for one party to use Hamas as a pretext for this mad daily killings of civilians. What’s happening is far beyond the seventh of October,”

he said, referring to the 2023 attack in which, according to Israeli figures, 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 taken hostage.
Gaza’s health authorities report that over 66,000 people have been killed in the territory since then.

“It is beyond revenge. This is ethnic cleansing and genocide in motion. So enough is enough,” Abdelatty said.

The U.S. administration released a 20-point proposal earlier in the week calling for a ceasefire, a swap of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian detainees in Israel, a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, the disarming of Hamas, and the creation of a transitional authority under international oversight.
Trump gave Hamas a deadline of three to four days to respond to the offer.
As a central figure in negotiations to halt the conflict, Egypt is actively coordinating with other regional powers to try to secure Hamas’s agreement to the plan, although Abdelatty expressed a measured outlook.

“If Hamas refuse, you know, then it would be very difficult. And of course, we will have more escalation. So that’s why we are exerting our intensive efforts in order to make this plan applicable and to get the approval of Hamas,” he said.

He added that although Egypt generally backs the U.S. proposal, there are still unresolved details that require more dialogue.

“There are a lot of holes that need to be filled, we need more discussions on how to implement it, especially on two important issues – governance and security arrangements,” he said.
“We are supportive of the Trump plan and the vision to end war and need to move forward.”

When questioned about whether the plan could lead to the forced displacement of Palestinians, Abdelatty was firm in his response.

“Displacement will not happen, it will not happen because displacement means the end of the Palestinian cause,” he said.
“We will not allow this to happen under any circumstances.”