President Donald Trump is in the region Monday to cement his plan for peace in Gaza.
US President Donald Trump has made a last-minute trip to the Middle East in the wake of the Gaza ceasefire deal.
He landed in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh late on Monday after flying in from Israel, where he addressed the Israeli Knesset.
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The first phase of Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan has now been completed, with Hamas releasing all 20 living Israeli captives in Gaza and Israel freeing Palestinian prisoners in the occupied West Bank.
So will this deal finally bring peace to the region?
And what does Trump’s plan mean for the broader Middle East?
Presenter: Neave Barker
Guests:
Sarah Eltantawi – Professor at Fordham University in New York City; political analyst and writer
Yezid Sayigh – Senior fellow at the Malcolm H Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut
Ramallah, occupied West Bank – The morning dawned full of anticipation as thousands of Palestinian families prepared to welcome their imprisoned relatives, who were scheduled to be released as part of a prisoner exchange deal with Israel.
Some had spent decades in prison, some were serving consecutive life sentences, and most had been rounded up wholesale by Israel in Gaza during its two-year war on the besieged enclave.
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The Ramallah Cultural Centre was where the families of political prisoners being released to the West Bank gathered on Monday, and tears, embraces, and anticipation were everywhere.
But the tears flowing down one woman’s face seemed different as she leaned against her brother, weeping bitterly.
They were shocked and saddened by the news they had just gotten about their brother, prisoner Muhammad Ahmad Imran from Hebron, who was detained in December 2022 and handed 13 life sentences. And their joy at hearing he would be released had just been dashed.
‘All words fail’
Ibtisam and her brother Raed Imran had come to Ramallah two days ago, after they got a call from Muhammad from the Israeli prison where he was held, telling them that he would be among the prisoners to be released to the West Bank.
But when they arrived at the cultural centre on Monday morning, they were told that Muhammad was on the list, yes, but that he was among the more than 100 prisoners whom Israel had decided to exile from Palestine.
According to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Media Office, Israel will be exiling 154 out of 250 Palestinian political prisoners it is releasing.
These men will likely face severe constraints on their movements and activities in the countries they will be taken to, and travel will be difficult given that they only have Palestinian citizenship.
Tamer Qarmout, associate professor in public policy at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, told Al Jazeera these exile orders amount to forced displacement of these individuals.
In addition, because Israel makes it nearly impossible for some Palestinians to travel outside Palestine, these prisoners’ families may never see them again.
Raed was still in disbelief, going over the past few days and all the things that had happened that made him sure his brother was coming home.
“I got a call from an Israeli officer … He told us not to show joy or receive well-wishers,” he said, describing a common experience for Palestinian families: threats by Israeli security forces – of violence, arrests, and worse if they showed any joy that their loved one was coming home.
Raed, left, and Ibtisam Imran were shocked to hear their brother Muhammad would be exiled from Palestine [Mosab Shawer/Al Jazeera]
“The Israeli army raided our home that night, asking where Muhammad would stay after his release. They warned against any celebrations, support for the resistance, or even messages of solidarity with Gaza. We told them we only wanted my brother’s freedom, and that we were prepared to shut our doors to any well-wishers.”
Ibtisam looked exhausted and tearful.
“I was so happy when I heard Muhammad would be released. We left Hebron two days ago … I wanted to be the first to receive him. But all that exhaustion from moving around and finding a place to stay here, it was all worth it; I was so sure all the fatigue would disappear at the moment of meeting,” she said with a sad smile.
“The occupation’s threats spoiled our joy and made us turbulent,” she added. “The manipulation of names and information was intentional, and this is what burned our nerves. [But] I will remain here until the last prisoner is released. I can’t describe what is in my heart … all words fail.”
Joy for the al-Zeir family
Also at the gate of the Ramallah Cultural Centre stood Bassam al-Zeir, a 60-year-old man from Dura, south of Hebron, his face tired but excited.
He was anticipating a reunion he had awaited for 23 years, with his brother Hani, a 50-year-old father of seven, and with their cousin Arafat al-Zeir.
Hani was arrested on June 28, 2002, and sentenced to 25 years in prison, of which he served 23 years. Arafat was arrested at the same time and sentenced to 35 years.
Bassam said it had been “a joyful thunderbolt” to learn that the two men were going to be released.
“My cousin Arafat’s name was on the first list then, at exactly 2am, my brother Hani’s name was released. We couldn’t believe it and started preparing to go to Ramallah right then.”
Bassam hasn’t seen his brother in more than two decades, as the family was denied any visits, likely because Bassam himself had been previously detained.
“I was arrested more than once, and they prevented me from seeing him, even during family visits, as if they wanted the separation between us to remain eternal.”
But, he added: “Freedom is coming … even if it’s delayed by 23 years.”
Despite his joy, Bassam is frustrated and saddened.
On the one hand, he said, he knew that the release of prisoners comes at an indescribable cost that the people of Gaza had to bear for two years.
And on the other hand, the restrictions the Israelis impose on prisoners’ families prevent them from expressing their joy at having their loved ones home again.
Bassam al-Zeir at the Ramallah Cultural Centre in Ramallah on October 13, 2025 [Mosab Shawer/Al Jazeera]
“We waited a quarter of a century [for this release] … but they even prevented joy from reaching us,” he says, his eyes welling with tears.
‘Cannot be described’
Then the bus arrived and prisoners began coming out, and Bassam surged forward with members of other families, eager to catch a glimpse of his brother and cousin.
But the crush of people at the doors of the bus was too much, and Bassam faltered, falling back a bit and shouting out “Hani! Hani!” in hopes that his brother would hear him.
Eventually, the brothers were reunited and tears flowed as they embraced and tried to pack a lot of feelings into those moments.
Asked about what was going through his head, Hani shook his head and said, “This feeling cannot be described in words…”
Arafat was not part of this tender moment. His health had deteriorated so much in Israeli prison that he had to be helped off the bus and whisked away immediately to be checked by doctors.
Relief at being out and seeing his brother after so long was apparent on Hani’s face, as was the weariness of his time in prison.
He and Arafat had been held in Ramon Prison until they were told shortly before their release that they were being moved to Ofer, another facility that Palestinians know is usually a last holding area for prisoners about to be released.
They were threatened, Hani said, but the joy of being moved to Ofer Prison was stronger.
“I felt my breath return, as if life had returned.
Russia has urged Pakistan and Afghanistan to exercise restraint after deadly fighting erupted along the border for two days, killing dozens and halting bilateral trade in what has amounted to the worst clashes in recent memory.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday that it was closely monitoring the events and that “the situation is stabilising”, following similar statements from China, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
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“We welcome this process,” the ministry added.
Tensions rose on Thursday, when the Taliban blamed Pakistan for explosions in Kabul and the eastern province of Paktika.
Two days later, on Saturday night, Taliban forces attacked various Pakistani military outposts. As Pakistani forces retaliated, the two sides exchanged gun, artillery and drone fire through early Sunday morning and fought sporadically throughout the day.
The two sides have reported conflicting death tolls. Pakistan’s military said 23 of its soldiers were dead and claimed to have killed 200 Taliban and affiliated fighters, while Afghanistan said its forces killed 58 Pakistani soldiers.
By Monday, Pakistani troops were stationed on high alert along the closed border with Afghanistan, where hundreds of people and trucks loaded with goods remained stranded.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it “greatly values dialogue and diplomacy”, but warned that “any further provocations would be met with an unwavering and befitting response”.
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021. Since then, Islamabad has accused the Taliban of allowing the Pakistan Taliban, also known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), to operate within Afghan borders – a charge Kabul denies.
Russia, meanwhile, has sought to boost its influence in Afghanistan since the withdrawal of United States troops that led to the Taliban’s rise.
In 2022 and 2024, a Taliban delegation attended Russia’s St Petersburg International Economic Forum. In 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin referred to the Taliban as “allies in the fight against terrorism” – namely the ISIL affiliate in Khorasan Province, ISKP, which has claimed responsibility for attacks in Russia, Afghanistan, Iran and elsewhere.
Kyiv has announced that it is sending a delegation to Washington for talks on strengthening its defence and energy resilience as Russian forces continue targeting Ukraine’s power infrastructure ahead of the cold winter months.
The departure of a senior delegation, led by Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, was announced on Monday, just as Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said it had imposed power outages across the country in a bid to reduce pressure on the grid in the wake of damaging Russian attacks.
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Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that he would meet with his US counterpart, President Donald Trump, in Washington on Friday to discuss Ukraine’s air defence and long-range strike capabilities.
Speaking to reporters in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said that he had shared with Trump a “vision” of how many US Tomahawk missiles Ukraine needs for its war effort against Russia and that the two leaders would further discuss the matter on Friday.
The comments came after recent remarks by Trump that he might consider giving Ukraine long-range precision strike Tomahawk missiles if Russia did not end the war soon, and as Zelenskyy has urged Trump to turn his attention to ending his country’s war with Russia, after having brokered a deal in Gaza.
Attacks on energy grid
The renewed talk of escalating pressure on Moscow comes in the wake of intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy facilities, prompting Ukraine’s Energy Ministry to announce that it was introducing restrictions across seven regions in an effort to reduce pressure on the damaged grid and preserve supply.
For the past three years, Russia has targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in a bid to demoralise the population, leaving millions without power amid brutally cold conditions.
“Due to the complicated situation in Ukraine’s Unified Energy System caused by previous Russian strikes, emergency power outages were implemented” across seven regions, the energy ministry said in a post on Telegram.
It listed territories mainly in the centre and east of the country, including the Donetsk region, where officials have encouraged civilians to leave due to the targeted attacks on power facilities.
“The emergency power cuts will be cancelled once the situation in the power grid has stabilised,” the statement said.
The escalating attacks left more than a million households and businesses temporarily without power in nine regions on Friday, while overnight attacks on Saturday night left two employees of Ukraine’s largest private energy company wounded.
“Russia has … made its attacks on our energy more vicious – to compensate for their failure on the ground,” Zelenskyy said on Sunday.
Delegation to Washington
In response to the attacks, Zelenskyy’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak said on Monday that a delegation, including Svyrydenko and National Security and Defence Council Secretary Rustem Umerov, had left for talks in Washington.
“We’re heading for high-level talks to strengthen Ukraine’s defence, secure our energy resilience, and intensify sanctions pressure on the aggressor,” he posted on X.
“The ultimate goal remains unchanged – a just and lasting peace.”
The delegation came after Zelenskyy said on Sunday that he had spoken to Trump for the second time in two days, in discussions that covered “defence of life in our country” and “strengthening our capabilities – in air defence, resilience, and long-range capabilities”.
“We also discussed many details related to the energy sector. President Trump is well informed about everything that is happening,” he said, adding that their respective teams were preparing for the talks.
Tomahawks on the table
Following the conversation, Trump told reporters on board his flight to Israel that he might consider giving Ukraine long-range precision strike Tomahawk missiles if Russia did not end the war soon.
“They’d like to have Tomahawks. That’s a step up,” Trump said, referring to the Ukrainians.
“The Tomahawk is an incredible weapon, very offensive weapon. And honestly, Russia does not need that,” Trump added.
On Monday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov responded to the suggestion that Washington could provide the missiles to Kyiv by saying such a move could have serious consequences.
Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev went even further, warning Trump on Monday that supplying Tomahawks to Ukraine could “end badly” for him.
Plans for United States President Donald Trump to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in South Korea in late October remain intact, despite resurgent trade tensions between the two countries, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says.
Speaking to Fox Business Network on Monday, Bessent said the US and China had “substantially de-escalated” after a series of tit-for-tat trade moves that threatened to strain relations and trigger a new trade war between Washington and Beijing.
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The comments came after Trump, angered by China’s October 9 decision to expand export controls on key rare earth minerals, announced an additional 100 percent tariff on Chinese goods set to take effect on November 1.
But there have since been “substantial communications” between the two sides, with additional staff-level meetings expected this week, said Bessent.
“The relationship, despite this announcement last week, is good. Lines of communication have reopened, so we’ll see where it goes,” said Bessent, adding that the “100 percent tariff does not have to happen” if the two sides work out their disagreements in negotiations.
He added that he expected a planned meeting between Trump and Xi at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in South Korea in late October to go ahead. “He [Trump] will be meeting with [Communist] Party Chair Xi in Korea,” said Bessent. “I believe that meeting will still be on.”
Bessent stressed that Trump and Xi have “a very good relationship” and suggested that Beijing’s latest policy on rare earth elements could have originated from a lower-level official rather than Xi himself.
The comments echo Trump’s seemingly conciliatory message the day before, in which he assured “all will be fine” with US-China relations.
“Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine!” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment. He doesn’t want Depression for his country, and neither do I. The USA wants to help China, not hurt it!!!”
The softer tone soothed a jittery Wall Street and sparked a strong rebound in US stocks at the start of trading in New York on Monday, after Trump’s tariff announcement on Friday sparked a big sell-off.
‘Pointed a bazooka’
Despite the apparent rapprochement, Bessent slammed China’s new export controls as provocative and said the US pushed back aggressively.
“They have pointed a bazooka at the supply chains and the industrial base of the entire free world,” said Bessent. “And, you know, we’re not going to have it. China is a command and control economy. They are neither going to command [nor] control us.”
He added that the US has been in touch with allies and expects support from the Europeans, India and allies in Asia.
China has defended its new export curbs, which require foreign companies to get Beijing’s approval to export products containing Chinese rare earth elements, and to disclose their intended use.
China’s Ministry of Commerce said the heightened restrictions were introduced in response to a series of US measures since the two countries’ trade talks held in Madrid, Spain last month, including Washington’s decision to blacklist Chinese firms and impose port fees on China-linked ships.
Beijing accused Washington of “provocative and damaging” actions and called Trump’s tariff threat a “typical example of double standards”.
China has a near monopoly over rare earth minerals, critical for the manufacture of technology such as electric cars, smartphones, semiconductors and weapons.
During a meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh, US President Donald Trump praised Egypt’s Abdel Fattah el-Sisi for playing a “very important role” in Gaza ceasefire talks with Hamas. Trump said the US stands “with him all the way” and confirmed that “phase two” of negotiations has begun.