Trump praised the U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire, saying chaos in the Middle East had been “totally defeated.”
He lauded Arab nations for aiding the peace deal and called it a historic turning point toward regional unity.
The address was briefly disrupted by Israeli opposition leader Ayman Odeh, who demanded recognition of a Palestinian state.
Trump Hails Gaza Ceasefire As ‘Dawn of a New Middle East’ in Knesset Address
During his Israel visit, U.S. President Donald Trump celebrated the Gaza ceasefire and hostage release, calling it the start of a “golden age” for Israel and the region.
Summary
U.S. President Donald Trump, during his visit to Israel, addressed the Knesset (Israeli Parliament). His visit came shortly after Hamas released 20 Israeli hostages under the ongoing Gaza ceasefire.
Celebrating the U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire, President Trump told the Knesset that “the golden age of Israel and the Middle East” has now begun.
His visit followed Hamas’s agreement to release 20 Israeli hostages as part of the ongoing ceasefire deal.
President Trump said on Monday that a “long nightmare” was finally over for Israelis and Palestinians alike after the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal was agreed between Israel and Hamas.
“The forces of chaos that have plagued the region are totally defeated,” he said in his speech before Israel’s Parliament.
Referring to the hostage exchange deal, he added: “After two harrowing years in darkness and captivity, 20 courageous hostages are returning to the glorious embrace of their families. Twenty-eight more are coming home to rest in their sacred soil for all of time. Today the skies are calm, the guns are silent, and the sun rises on a holy land that is finally at peace.”
Claiming that “this is the dawn of a new Middle East,” Trump thanked the Arab Muslim nations for their role in helping Israel and the U.S. broker a ceasefire deal with Hamas leadership.
“It is an incredible triumph for Israel and the world to have all of these nations working together as partners of peace. It is unusual to see that, but it happened in this case—it is a very unusual point in time. Generations from now, this will be remembered as the moment when everything began to change for the better,” he said. “This will be the golden age of Israel and the golden age of the Middle East.”
Trump also expressed his gratitude toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, claiming the peace deal would not have been possible without him.
Terming U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio “the greatest Secretary of State in the history of the United States” and comparing Steve Witkoff, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East, to Henry Kissinger, Trump called Rubio, Witkoff, and Pete Hegseth “true American patriots.”
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“Bibi [Netanyahu] would call me so many times requesting weapons—so many that Israel became strong and powerful… that’s what led to peace,” Trump told the Israeli Parliament.
Recalling the October 7, 2023, attacks, Trump said, “It was the worst slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust.”
He added, “To all the families whose lives were forever changed by the atrocities of that day, and to all of the people of Israel, please know that America joins you in two everlasting vows—never forget and never again.”
Trump urged Palestinians to focus on “building their people up” instead of attacking Israel.
President Trump told Israeli lawmakers on Monday that their country had no more to achieve on the battlefield and must now work toward peace in the Middle East after two years of war against Hamas and skirmishes with Hezbollah and Iran.
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Trump’s speech was interrupted by Israeli far-left leader Ayman Odeh, who later wrote on X: “They removed me from the plenum just because I raised the simplest demand, a demand that the entire international community agrees on—to recognize a Palestinian state.”
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