What’s in Trump’s declaration on ‘Enduring Peace and Prosperity’?

The leaders of Egypt, Qatar, Turkiye and the US have released a joint statement backing the Gaza ceasefire deal and committing to “enduring peace” in the region.

The statement, released on Monday after an international summit in Egypt’s Sharm el-Sheikh, is a rare acknowledgement by the Trump administration that Palestinians and Israelis deserve equal rights.

The proclamation also does not point the finger at Palestinians as the cause of the conflict in the way that successive US administrations have.

Notably, it reframes the struggle in Gaza as part of the broader Palestinian question. The Trump administration has previously avoided even describing the residents of Gaza as Palestinian.

However, the statement does not explicitly acknowledge Palestinians’ right to statehood and self-determination.

World leaders, diplomats in Egypt worry about next steps

There were more than 20 world leaders who attended this very hastily organised event in Sharm el-Sheikh. Everybody here hailed Trump’s 20-point peace plan as a very significant milestone, something that really needed to be built on.

Even though the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal has been implemented, many here are worried about what comes next.

There are still a lot of details to work through, including: Will Hamas disarm? Will the Palestinian Authority have a role in the governance of a post-war Gaza? Will this plan at some point lead to a credible pathway forward for the discussion or creation of a Palestinian state?

These are all things that are going to be thorny issues that need to be tackled, going forward.

And even though everybody who is here agreed that this was a victory lap, and even though Trump said that this was a very big win and a very important step for peace in the region and the world, behind the scenes, diplomats and leaders here were also concerned.

They want to ensure that the US continues to play a big role in applying the necessary political pressure to ensure this goes forward, that the details are followed through, and that this 20-point peace plan can ultimately be achieved all the way through.

Genocide Joe is happy too

Biden commends Trump for ‘renewed ceasefire deal’

Former US President Joe Biden has welcomed the release of Israeli captives and praised the Trump administration for getting “a renewed ceasefire deal over the finish line”.

“I am deeply grateful and relieved that this day has come,” he wrote in a post on X.

“For the last living 20 hostages who have been through unimaginable hell and are finally reunited with their families and loved ones, and for the civilians in Gaza who have experienced immeasurable loss and will finally get the chance to rebuild their lives,” he said.

“Now, with the backing of the United States and the world, the Middle East is on a path to peace that I hope endures and a future for Israelis and Palestinians alike with equal measures of peace, dignity, and safety,” Biden added.

https://x.com/JoeBiden/status/1977876858310992109

Australia would consider request to send troops to Gaza if asked, minister says

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles has told Sky News that Canberra would consider a request to send peacekeeping troops to Gaza, but that it has not yet been asked to do so.

“Look, I don’t think we’re in that world yet. There’s been no request … I wouldn’t be in the world of speculating about what we would do in the future,” Marles said.

“Obviously, we consider any request that comes to us. But I don’t really want to speculate on this beyond that. We seek to be as constructive as we can be.”

The minister also praised Trump’s role in securing the ceasefire, saying the US president “deserves an enormous amount of credit”, noting that “over the last two years and more, we have seen just an appalling tragedy play out in the Middle East”.

Egypt’s el-Sisi says two-state solution is ‘the only way to achieve peace’

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, speaking at the peace summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, has said a two-state solution is the “only way” to secure lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians.

He said Egypt would work with “all partners” to lay the foundation for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.

What’s next for Gaza after captives-prisoners exchange?

We have a 20-point plan, and we are now at number five. So there’s a whole lot more steps that need to happen if this is going to continue.

First and foremost, they need to figure out who is running the Gaza Strip. The Trump plan calls for technocrats.

They also need to form an international security force, because the plan says the Israeli military will pull back to certain lines once that security force, made up – we believe – of soldiers from predominantly Muslim countries, are able to secure that area.

Of course, there’s the rebuilding.

And Trump says he will be the chairman of the “Board of Peace” that will implement next steps. There’s also the funding for the rebuilding. We heard US Vice President JD Vance say some 24 hours ago that they thought Israel would pay some of the money. But we are not exactly sure if that is in the cards.

But there are 15 more steps to get to the 20th, which is about talks for a two-state solution.

Trump comments on his call for a pardon for Netanyahu

The US president has spoken to reporters on board Air Force One about his whirlwind trip to Israel and Egypt.

He said he did not want to bring up the subject of a pardon for Netanyahu during his address at the Israeli Knesset, but was moved to do so because of the applause for the prime minister.

“I actually told him I didn’t want to bring up the pardon. But it was just a perfect spot. It was good timing. Wouldn’t you say?” Trump said, according to a video posted by the White House.

“Because he was getting a very good hand [round of applause], and when they stopped, I said, ‘Why don’t you give this guy a pardon?’ If he didn’t get a good hand, I wouldn’t have done that,” he added.

Trump acknowledged that the move was a “little risque” and that “it’s a pretty sore subject in Israel”.

Netanyahu was charged in 2019 on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust. The trial, which involves three criminal cases, began in 2020, and if convicted, Netanyahu could face up to 10 years in jail as well as a fine. The Israeli prime minister denies the charges.

Trump on 2-state solution

“I think it’s a very important day, since nobody thought this was possible,” he told reporters.

“They say the Middle East blows it away. And they say, well, fighting… it’s just thousands of years. Nothing’s been done. It’s a whole thing with the Arabs, Jewish people. It’s just never been done, and there’s a certain mystery to the Middle East.”

When asked about his Egyptian President el-Sisi’s call for a two-state solution, Trump said his peace plan was about something very different – “rebuilding Gaza”.

“A lot of people like the one-state solution; a lot of people like the two-state solution… I haven’t commented on that. At some point, I’ll decide what I think is right, but it’d be in coordination with other states and other countries,” he added.

Trump was also asked how confident he was about phase two of the deal for Gaza.

“You know, we have a lot of power,” he responded.

“Those are, you know ,really seriously rich countries and, uh, they can handle it,” he added, an apparent reference to the nations that sent leaders to the summit.

Yeah don't count on Trump to get to a Palestinian state.

Trump implies questions on Gaza’s long-term future can wait

Trump is not getting into any real commitments on what happens down the road. If anything, this ceasefire is simply bringing the region back to what the situation was a little more than two years ago.

Questions persist about whether the current Israeli government and the split Palestinian leadership – the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank and Hamas in Gaza – could ever get to the point where there would be peace negotiations that would establish two separate states: One Israeli, one Palestinian.

If anything, Trump was underscoring during his conversation with reporters that the first step has just been taken. They now need to focus on trying to rebuild Gaza, get people back into their homes.

These kinds of other questions can be dealt with down the road, he implied.

Palestinian novelist Basim Khandaqji arrives in Egypt after release from Israeli jail

The 41-year-old writer has arrived in Egypt after being exiled by Israeli authorities on his release from Israeli prison.

A video shared by The Palestinian Information Center shows a gaunt Khandaqji being greeted by supporters on his arrival in Egypt, wearing a traditional Palestinian scarf and smiling.

Khandaqji was arrested in 2004, at the age of 21, on terrorism charges and sentenced to three life sentences over a deadly bombing in Tel Aviv.

In 2024, Khandaqji received the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) for his novel A Mask, the Colour of the Sky, one of several books he penned while in Israeli prison.

According to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office, Israel forced at least 154 of the Palestinians it freed on Monday into exile.

#شاهد | الأسير باسم خندقجي يصل مصر عقب تحرره في صفقة التبادل pic.twitter.com/BQeYEDUKj5

— المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام (@PalinfoAr) October 13, 2025

UN relief chief allocates more funds to Gaza recovery

Tom Fletcher says he has allocated an additional $11m from the UN’s emergency response fund to help “scale up aid” in Gaza as winter approaches.

In a post on X, the UN’s relief chief said the figure brings the total funds allocated by his agency to Gaza to $20m and that the money will be used to “deliver food, water, shelter and health services, and keep essential infrastructure running”.

“The ceasefire in Gaza offers a critical window to scale up aid, ahead of winter,” he wrote.

Earlier, Fletcher told the Associated Press news agency that funding and access are still needed to ensure that aid reaches Gaza, as well as ensuring that the ceasefire agreement holds.

The UN’s Emergency Response Fund is funded by voluntary commitments made by UN member states, and is meant to allow the global body to respond quickly to emergencies when needed.

The ceasefire in Gaza offers a critical window to scale up aid, ahead of winter.

I’ve allocated an additional $11 million from @UNCERF, bringing the total to $20 million, to deliver food, water, shelter and health services, and keep essential infrastructure running. pic.twitter.com/0GajVkE9Ha

— Tom Fletcher (@UNReliefChief) October 13, 2025

Aid trucks still waiting at Gaza crossing as Israeli forces delay entry

It’s just after 8am in Gaza and not a single truck has entered through the Kissufim crossing, one of the routes that had been expected to open today.

There are dozens of trucks waiting for at least two hours for the green light from Israeli forces to move through, unload food supplies and return.

Five crossings are meant to open in the south, and at least two in the north.

Today, the expectation is for about 600 trucks carrying humanitarian aid – food, shelter materials, medicine and fuel. Some drivers told us they waited the entire day yesterday for clearance but never received it, eventually returning home with their trucks still full.

It shows just how extensive the delays and restrictions are. Inspections can take hours, sometimes stretching through the entire day, leaving much-needed aid stuck at the border.

No means in Gaza to treat released Palestinians requiring medical care

Throughout the day, we’ve seen a lot of excitement and happiness. People here are overjoyed by the release of Palestinians kidnapped and detained by the Israeli military over the course of the past two years.

But we also saw some people falling to their knees and crying with disappointment when they found out that their family members, their sons, their daughters, were not among those released.

Now, the released Palestinians are returning to a Gaza they do not recognise. They are coming back to areas where there are no homes, no public facilities, no schools, and no medical facilities.

We cannot overstate how important and critical medical facilities are at this particular time.

Many of the released Palestinians need immediate medical attention, but unfortunately, the remaining medical facilities do not have the resources to provide the needed care due to the bombardment, the deliberate prevention and obstruction of medical aid and supplies. Let alone the many times these hospitals were stormed and destroyed by the Israeli military.

This leaves no options for people here but to seek medical attention elsewhere. And many are now lining up now for medical evacuation.

Gaza as of this moment is completely different to the Gaza of two years ago. There’s absolute destruction and devastation of all means of life to the point it feels it’s unlivable, and it’s quite hard to sustain life here. So there’s a lot of uncertainty, although mixed with a little bit of hope. But uncertainty is dominating every conversation as of this moment across the Gaza Strip.

‘We were in a slaughterhouse, not a prison’

We’ve been hearing from Palestinians released from Israeli detention in Khan Younis.

Abdallah Abu Rafe described his release as a “great feeling”. “We were in a slaughterhouse, not a prison. Unfortunately, we were in a slaughterhouse called the Ofer prison. Many young men are still there. The situation in the Israeli prisons is very difficult. There are no mattresses. They always take the mattresses away. The food situation is difficult. Things are difficult there,” he said.

Another released detainee, Yasin Abu Amra, described conditions in Israeli jails as “very, very bad”. “In terms of the food, the oppression, and the beatings, everything was bad. There was no food or drink. I hadn’t eaten for four days. They gave me two sweets here, and I ate them,” he said.

Saed Shubair, who was also freed on Monday, said he did not know how to describe his feelings. “The feeling is indescribable,” he said. “Seeing the sun without bars is an indescribable feeling. My hands are free from the handcuffs. Freedom is priceless.”

As we’ve been reporting, Israel released some 250 Palestinians serving life and long sentences and some 1,718 others who had been taken from Gaza over the course of the war there. The United Nations had considered the latter group as forcibly disappeared.

_{People greet freed Palestinian prisoners as they arrive in the Gaza Strip after their release from Israeli jails, outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Monday, October 13}

Brother of Al Jazeera correspondent among Palestinians released in Gaza

One of the Palestinians freed on Monday was the brother of our correspondent, Ibrahim al-Khalili. Our correspondent made the journey to southern Gaza to reunite with his brother, Mohammed.

The Israeli military detained both of them last year, during its ground offensive in Gaza City. Al-Khalili was later released, while his brother remained in detention for 19 months.

Like most of the Palestinians from the Gaza Strip imprisoned en masse by Israel, he was held without charge or trial.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/b6I-5lPh4TE

Released Palestinians included dozens of Gaza health workers

Advocacy organisation Healthcare Workers Watch says the list of Palestinians freed from Israeli prisons on Monday included the names of at least 55 health workers, including 24 nurses, seven doctors and two paramedics.

Of those, at least 44 “were abducted by the Israeli Occupation Forces from the hospitals where they were working”, Healthcare Workers Watch said, noting that 115 more Palestinian healthcare workers from Gaza are still in Israeli detention.

Dr Muath Alser, the cofounder and director of Healthcare Workers Watch, said that Israel’s “systematic abduction of healthcare workers is a war crime” that has seen highly trained medical professionals held unlawfully and Palestinians deprived of medical care.

Alser called for Israel to “immediately and unconditionally release all the detained healthcare workers, including the bodies of those tortured to death in detention”.

Al-Awda Hospital welcomes return of Dr Ahmed Muhanna

_{Hundreds of people gathered at al-Awda Hospital in Gaza City on Monday to welcome the return of the hospital’s director, Ahmed Muhanna, nearly two years after he was detained by Israeli forces}

Calls grow for release of Gaza’s Dr Abu Safia after ceasefire deal

Among Palestinian detainees not released by Israel is Hussam Abu Safia, a hospital director in Gaza who was abducted by Israeli forces in December 2024 and has stayed in detention despite growing calls for his release and reports by his lawyer that he has been tortured in Israeli prison.

Many Palestinian rights supporters see Abu Safia as the embodiment of the resilience of Palestinian medics, as Israel systemically targeted Gaza’s health sector for more than two years.

It is unclear whether Abu Safia will be released as part of the ceasefire deal, which includes both Israelis held captive by Hamas in Gaza and Palestinians swept up in Gaza and imprisoned en masse by Israel, most without charge or trial.

_{Pro-Palestinian protestors demanding release of Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, Dr. Hussam Abu Safia}

Palestine says more than 10,000 people remain ‘unlawfully held captive’

Palestine says more than 10,000 Palestinians remain unlawfully held in Israel despite yesterday’s exchange of captives and prisoners in Gaza.

Officials say 1,968 Palestinian captives have been freed since the start of the deal.

At least 77 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli detention centres over the past two years, while 360 children remain behind bars, it added.

Lawyers call for ICC, UN inquiries into killing of journalist Saleh Aljafarawi

Human rights lawyer Sara Segneri says she and others are pursuing complaints on behalf of Palestinian journalist Saleh Aljafarawi, who was shot dead in Gaza City after going missing on Sunday morning.

“Saleh Aljafarawi’s kidnapping, torture, and murder is a grave injustice that demands accountability at the highest level,” Segneri wrote in a post on social media.

She said those acting on behalf of Aljafarawi have filed “complaints and demands for investigation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) and multiple UN investigative bodies and special rapporteurs”.

“Justice for Saleh is not only about one man’s fate – it is about defending the rule of law, protecting journalists, and upholding the dignity of all civilians who dare to speak truth amid conflict,” she added.

Today, on behalf of our client, Saleh Al Jafarawi, we filed complaints and demands for investigations and accountability for his kidnapping, torture, and murder, as well as for the censorship of his speech during his life & work as a journalist. Read more: https://t.co/OokaRPqLyA pic.twitter.com/aY1CotjLjA

— Sara Segneri (@Sara_Segneri) October 13, 2025

Two Palestinians wounded by Israeli fire in southern Gaza

Two Palestinians have been wounded by Israeli fire in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, sources at Nasser Medical Complex told Al Jazeera.

Clashes east of Jabalia in Gaza: Report

Violent clashes have been ongoing this morning east of Jabalia, in northern Gaza, Palestinian media are reporting.

The fighting reportedly involves security forces affiliated with the Interior Ministry and armed groups described as being backed by Israel.

Israeli forces kill 5 Palestinians in Gaza City

Five Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the Shujayea neighbourhood of Gaza City.

The Israeli army confirmed killing the individuals, claiming they were approaching its soldiers when targeted.

‘Another Nakba’: UN expert says Gaza recovery will take generations

Israel must allow tents and caravans to immediately be delivered to the Gaza Strip, a UN expert says, as displaced Palestinians returning to the north of the bombarded territory have found their homes and neighbourhoods destroyed.

Balakrishnan Rajagopal, the UN special rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, said people are finding nothing but rubble in areas from which Israeli forces have withdrawn in northern Gaza.

“The psychological impact and trauma are profound, and that’s what we are seeing right now as people are returning to northern Gaza,” he told Al Jazeera on Saturday.

_{Palestinians receive food parcels after aid trucks entered from the Karem Abu Salem crossing, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip}