US President Donald Trump struck an optimistic and triumphant tone in Cairo on Monday after signing the Gaza ceasefire agreement, calling it a milestone that could become “the greatest deal of them all.”
Speaking to an assembly of international leaders, Trump said the breakthrough “came together in one little period,” adding that “the greatest deals just sort of happen.” After the signing, he briefly met privately with the heads of state present for what he described as “a little conversation.”
From the outset of his remarks, Trump moved quickly to acknowledge dignitaries in the room. He paused to ask about Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
“Where is Canada, by the way? Where are you?” Trump said. “He knew the importance of this. He said, ‘I want to be there.’ So many people have done that.”
Over several minutes, Trump called out leaders from Egypt, Pakistan, Hungary, the European Union and others, applauding their roles in getting the deal over the finish line. He praised Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as a “very successful politician,” while calling Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán “a great leader.”
Trump described the gathering as “perhaps the wealthiest and most powerful group of nations ever assembled at one time,” and said recent developments marked “a historic” shift.
Pakistan Backs Trump for Nobel Prize
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, attending the event, said Trump is the “most wonderful candidate” for the Nobel Peace Prize. Sharif credited him with saving “millions of lives” and claimed the US president helped reduce conflict globally — citing the Gaza ceasefire and tensions with India earlier in the year.
Pakistan formally nominated Trump for the prize in June, though Indian officials have disputed any US role in their ceasefire. Trump has previously spoken openly about wanting to be awarded the Nobel, which has gone in the past to four American presidents.
Emotional Reunion After Hostage Releases
In a separate development tied to the ceasefire, former hostage Arbel Yehoud reunited with her boyfriend, Ariel Cunio, more than two years after both were abducted in the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks.
Cunio, 28, was one of the final four surviving hostages from the Nir Oz kibbutz and was freed this week alongside his brother David. David’s wife, Sharon, and their three-year-old twin daughters, Emma and Yuli, had been released during a November 2023 pause in fighting.
Nir Oz, a small farming community near the Gaza border, lost more than a quarter of its 400 residents to killings or kidnappings during the attack.
Yehoud, 29, was released in January under a previous ceasefire agreement. Speaking through a support forum, she said the fight to free the remaining captives is not over. “We must not relent until the last hostage comes home,” she said. “Only then can we heal as a society and as a people.”
CNN journalists Tal Shalev and Tamar Michaelis contributed to the original reporting.