Secretary of State Briefly Halts Trump with Handwritten Note on Middle East Peace Deal
A urgent handwritten message passed to Donald Trump by his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, indicated that an announcement regarding a ceasefire deal in Gaza might be made imminently.
Recorded in a photograph, the note's text urged the president to approve a message on his social media platform to announce the news first.
"Very close," it stated, according to the photo. "We need you to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first."
Shortly after the note was revealed, Trump published on his Truth Social network, expressing he was "extremely pleased" to reveal the first phase of the deal.
"This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will pull back their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Robust, Durable, and Enduring Peace," he stated.
The Incident the Note Was Passed to Trump
Trump was conducting a roundtable event with right-leaning commentators about far-left groups when Rubio, standing in the rear of the White House's state room, caught his eye.
He wanted to share an update for Trump, he explained, but it would have to wait until after the press left. Then, Rubio passed the president the note.
"I just received a note by the secretary of state saying that we're nearing completion to a deal on the Middle East, and they're gonna require my input pretty quickly," Trump said. "So we'll take a couple of more questions."
Background of the Peace Talks
The meeting had already been going on for more than an hour when Rubio first approached. The president welcomed him to enter, and Rubio quietly spoke something to Trump before giving him the note.
The note's urgent tone came as Trump's key regional advisor, Steve Witkoff, Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and other senior officials participated in a third day of negotiations between Israel and Hamas at an Red Sea location – a sign that negotiators are working to tackle the toughest issues of a US plan to halt hostilities in Gaza.
Trump's Remarks on Middle East Travel
Trump had begun the gathering by informing the press that he intended to travel to the Middle East "toward the end of the week" and could even "visit multiple locations" in the region to Cairo and perhaps Gaza as US negotiators closed in on a deal.
Still, even after Rubio passed Trump the note, Trump kept speaking to the influencers and take questions from the media as the secretary of state became visibly anxious.
Wrapping Up the Event
Nearly 10 minutes after his initial comments about departing, Trump declared: "I have to go now to try and solve some problems in the Middle East – although I'm very well represented by our secretary of state. He could probably do an more effective job than me, but who knows."
"We wish to avoid to take any chances. So we're going to go and do that," Trump added.
He then proposed that Pam Bondi and Kristi Noem remain and take questions in his stead. However, Trump continued to take questions before the event finally broke up without Cabinet members staying.
"We're gonna get peace in the Middle East," Trump wrapped by saying. "That is exactly what we want to do."
