Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will visit Egypt on Monday to participate in the Sharm El-Sheikh Peace Summit and attend the signing ceremony of a peace agreement aimed at ending the serious situation in Gaza.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the prime minister will attend the summit at the invitation of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and US President Donald Trump. Deputy Prime Minister and External Affairs Minister Ishaq Dar and other senior cabinet members will accompany the prime minister during the visit.
The Sharm El-Sheikh Summit is the result of diplomatic efforts launched on the sidelines of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York last month.
Read more: Gaza ceasefire holds ahead of hostage exchange and Trump’s visit to Israel
Earlier on September 23, Prime Minister Shehbaz joined the leaders of seven Arab-Islamic countries (Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia and Türkiye) in a summit-level meeting with the President of the United States to explore ways to achieve peace in Gaza.
In a joint statement, participating Arab-Islamic nations welcomed President Trump’s efforts to restore peace and reaffirmed their commitment to working with the United States to ensure a comprehensive and sustainable ceasefire while addressing the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The Foreign Ministry said the prime minister’s participation reflects Pakistan’s historic and unwavering support for the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and lasting peace and stability in the region.
Pakistan hopes that the Sharm El-Sheikh Peace Summit will pave the way for a full Israeli withdrawal, the protection of Palestinian civilians, an end to their displacement, the release of prisoners and the reconstruction of Gaza.
Islamabad also hopes that ongoing peace efforts will help launch a credible political process leading to an independent, viable and contiguous State of Palestine, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, based on the pre-1967 borders, in accordance with relevant United Nations resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative.
Read: Gazans return home as ceasefire between Israel and Hamas holds
US President Donald Trump and other world leaders prepared to meet in Egypt for a major peace summit.
Trump will first pass through Israel, address parliament and meet with hostage families on Monday before heading to Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt for the summit, where a “document ending the war in the Gaza Strip” is expected to be signed, according to the Foreign Ministry in Cairo.
Israelis were looking forward to Monday, when Hamas is expected to release the remaining 48 hostages, dead and alive. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel was “prepared and ready for the immediate reception of all our hostages.”
Hamas will release the captives, 20 of whom Israel believes are still alive, in exchange for nearly 2,000 prisoners held in Israeli jails. “According to the signed agreement, the prisoner exchange will begin on Monday morning,” Hamas official Osama Hamdan told AFP.
Read more: Hamas warns that difficult talks are ahead
Following Trump’s visit to Israel on Monday, he and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will chair a summit of leaders from more than 20 countries in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Egyptian presidency announced.
“The meeting will focus on ending the war in the Gaza Strip, enhancing efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East and ushering in a new era of regional security,” he said. Hamas and Israel are not expected to participate. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said he will attend.
