#gaza-peace-plan

#gaza-peace-plan

US officials have discussed the second phase of President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a trip to Israel on Saturday. US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff was visiting Israel as part of a US delegation that also included Jared Kushner, Senior Advisor Aryeh Lightstone, and White House advisor Josh Gruenbaum. The Trump administration has been pushing for the start of the second phase of the 20-point peace plan, which would involve the reopening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

Since then, both sides have accused the other of breaking the deal. Israel has continued to restrict aid into the strip and conduct attacks. The Gazan health ministry says more than 400 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire, and UNICEF announced this week that at least 100 of the victims were children. Israel says Hamas militants continue to be a threat and that its airstrikes in Gaza are targeting the group.

Behind the scenes: The call between Trump and MBS, which was not previously made public, took place after the Gaza peace summit in Egypt last month. A U.S. official with direct knowledge of the call said Trump told MBS he'd managed to end the war in Gaza, and now wanted the crown prince to move toward normalization with Israel. MBS said he was willing to work on it with the Trump administration, the U.S. official said.

Only a decolonised plan centred on Palestinian sovereignty can bring lasting peace to Gaza. United States President Donald Trump's 20-point Gaza peace plan offers some constructive proposals on hostages, humanitarian aid, and reconstruction. Yet it is marred by an unmistakable colonial framework: Gaza is to be overseen by Trump himself, with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and other outsiders cast as trustees for Palestinian governance, while Palestinian statehood is deferred indefinitely.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Security Cabinet, has slammed US President Donald Trump's new peace plan, calling it "a resounding diplomatic failure." In an extensive post on X, Smotrich referenced the 2023 Hamas-led attacks that sparked the current war in Gaza, accusing Trump and Netanyahu of "turning our backs on all the lessons of October 7." He blasted the plan as "a tragedy of leadership fleeing from the truth." "In my estimation, it will also end in tears. Our children will be forced to fight in Gaza again," said Smotrich, the leader of the hardline, ultra-nationalist National Religious Party-Religious Zionism.

Chinese markets continued to show resilience today, with improved PMI surveys offering a glimmer of hope for the broader economy. The latest manufacturing PMI climbed to a six-month high of 49.8, edging closer to the key 50 threshold after a six-month period of contraction. The data, coupled with renewed optimism around Chinese tech stocks, helped the Hang Seng rise 0.9%, with traders increasingly viewing Chinese AI names as a means to diversify from the Mag7 names.