A senior Hamas official told Al Arabiya that the ceasefire and hostage deal would not have happened without the new Trump administration.
“The Gaza ceasefire agreement would not have happened without Donald Trump,” former Hamas health minister Basem Naim told Al Arabiya. “The deal would not have been reached without pressure from the Trump administration. The Trump administration applied appropriate pressure to Netanyahu. »
President-elect Trump has previously said the ceasefire agreement would not have happened without his insistence that deliberations be completed before his inauguration date.
PRESIDENT TRUMP LIVE ON THE DAN BONGINO SHOW “THERE WOULD BE NO HOSTAGE OFFER WITHOUT US…And BETTER BE DONE BEFORE THE TIME I TAKE THE OATH” pic.twitter.com/NUvf0Jw3bU
– Johnny St. Pete (@JohnMcCloy) January 16, 2025
“If we weren’t involved in this deal, the deal would never have happened,” Trump said at the news conference. Dan Bongino Show THURSDAY. “We changed the course, and we changed it quickly, and frankly, it’s better that it be done before I take the oath of office.”
Trump went on to say that pressure from members of his team, such as new Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, was the reason the deal was reached.Biden and Trump take credit
Trump then criticized a “disgraceful” President Joe Biden.
“He didn’t do anything! If I didn’t do this, if we didn’t get involved, the hostages would never get out,” Trump said.
Biden took credit for the ceasefire agreement on Wednesday in his final speech to the United States.
“This plan was developed and negotiated by my team and will be largely implemented by the new administration,” Biden said in his farewell address to America. “That’s why I’ve asked my team to keep the new administration fully informed, as it should be. Working together as Americans.”
Biden told MSNBC on Thursday that he has not had any recent discussions with Trump regarding the ceasefire agreement.
However, during a press briefing on Wednesday, he told reporters that his administration and Trump’s administration were “speaking as one team.”
