ISTANBUL

Three Qatari diplomats were killed, and two others were injured in a car crash in the Egyptian Red Sea city of Sharm El-Sheikh, according to an official statement.

Qatar’s Embassy in Cairo said on the US social media company X that Emiri Diwan members Saud bin Thamer Al Thani, Abdullah Al-Ghanem Al-Khayarin, and Hassan Jaber Al-Jaber lost their lives in a traffic accident while performing their official duties.

Two other Diwan members, Abdullah Issa Al-Kuwari and Mohammed Abdulaziz Al-Buainain, were injured in the accident and transferred to Sharm El-Sheikh International Hospital for medical care.

The embassy added that deceased and injured diplomats will be transported to Doha aboard a Qatari plane today, expressing gratitude to Egyptian authorities “for their cooperation, care, and attention in following up on the incident and providing the necessary facilitation.”

According to Egypt’s state-run Al-Qahera News channel, the accident was caused by a steering wheel malfunction.

Sharm El-Sheikh will host an international peace summit Monday, to be co-chaired by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, with the attendance of more than 20 countries.

The summit seeks to “end the war in the Gaza Strip, enhance efforts to bring peace and stability to the Middle East, and usher in a new phase of regional security and stability,” according to an Egyptian presidential statement.

Trump announced Wednesday that Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a 20-point plan he laid out Sept. 29 to bring a ceasefire to Gaza, release all Israeli captives being held there in exchange for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the entire Gaza Strip. The first phase of the deal came into force at 12 noon local time (0900 GMT) Friday.

A second phase of the plan calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza without Hamas’ participation, the formation of a security force comprising Palestinians and troops from Arab and Islamic countries, and the disarmament of Hamas.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed over 67,600 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it uninhabitable.