Trump to Meet Qatar’s Prime Minister for Gaza Ceasefire Talks

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani speaks after a meeting with the Lebanese president at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Emilie Madi

Washington/Doha, July 16 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) – U.S. President Donald Trump will meet with Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani on Wednesday to discuss negotiations over a potential Gaza ceasefire deal, Axios reporter Barak Ravid posted on X.

Israeli and Hamas negotiators have been taking part in the latest round of ceasefire talks in Doha since July 6, discussing a U.S.-backed proposal for a 60-day ceasefire that would include a phased release of hostages, Israeli troop withdrawals from parts of Gaza, and talks on ending the conflict.

Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said on Sunday that he remained “hopeful” about the negotiations in Qatar, which serves as a key mediator. U.S., Qatari, and Egyptian mediators have been working to reach an agreement, though Israel and Hamas remain divided on the scope of an eventual Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave.

The latest round of violence in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict began in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking approximately 250 hostages, according to Israeli authorities. Gaza’s health ministry says Israel’s subsequent military operation has killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, displaced the enclave’s entire population, and triggered a hunger crisis. Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court, which it denies.

A previous two-month ceasefire ended after Israeli strikes killed more than 400 Palestinians on March 18. Earlier this year, Trump proposed a U.S. takeover of Gaza, which was widely condemned by rights experts, the United Nations, and Palestinian authorities as an attempt at “ethnic cleansing.”

Trump and Sheikh Mohammed are also expected to discuss efforts to resume negotiations between the United States and Iran on reaching a new nuclear agreement, Ravid added, citing a source familiar with the matter.