•  ‘Hamas is going to have to start returning the bodies of the deceased hostages, including two Americans, quickly, or the other Countries involved in this GREAT PEACE will take action,’ says Trump

ISTANBUL

US President Donald Trump praised Qatar on Saturday as a “great ally” during a brief refueling stop in Doha while traveling to Malaysia to attend the 47th summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

“It is an honor. We have a great ally. He's a great ally. They are a great ally. And these are two great men…. I want to just say we express our thanks, and you have a safe Middle East right there, and you're gonna keep it that way for a long time,” Trump said alongside Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman.

“I was thinking, we’re landing here, we’re going to fuel up, and it’s such an honor to have you on the plane,” he said.

“What we’ve done is incredible. Peace to the Middle East and they were a very big factor in this and I just want to thank (them).”

Trump further said that the US and Qatar have done “a lot together, especially in the last year.”

Asked if the ceasefire in Gaza would hold, Trump said: “I think it will hold. If it doesn’t hold, that would be Hamas. Hamas will not be hard to take care of very quickly. I hope it holds for Hamas too, because they gave us their word on something.”

On the formation of a stabilization force set to be deployed in Gaza, Trump said it would be in place “pretty quickly,” explaining that leaders are being selected right now.

“You’re going to have peace in the Middle East. This is real peace this has never happened before 3,000 years, this has never happened,” he said.

Responding to a question on peacekeeping troops entering Gaza, Trump said: “They’ll do it at the time they need to. By the way, Israel will go in there very easily….It’s a great success. It’s going to be long-lasting. Hopefully ever-lasting peace.”

The Qatari emir said on US social media company X: “Pleased to meet my friend, US President Donald Trump, today on the occasion of his stop in our country along with his accompanying delegation as part of his Asian tour.”

“It was a good opportunity to discuss Middle East peace plans, follow up on efforts to consolidate the agreement to end the war in Gaza, and talk about the prospects for strategic cooperation that bring together our two friendly nations,” he added.

Sheikh Tamim met Trump at Al-Udeid Air Base, accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior US officials, according to the Amiri Diwan website.

Trump later wrote on his Truth Social platform: “We have a very strong PEACE in the Middle East, and I believe it has a good chance of being EVERLASTING.”

“Hamas is going to have to start returning the bodies of the deceased hostages, including two Americans, quickly, or the other Countries involved in this GREAT PEACE will take action,” he warned.

“Some of the bodies are hard to reach, but others they can return now and, for some reason, they are not. Perhaps it has to do with their disarming, but when I said, “Both sides would be treated fairly,” that only applies if they comply with their obligations.”

“Let’s see what they do over the next 48 hours. I am watching this very closely.”

The first phase of a ceasefire took effect in Gaza on Oct. 10 under Trump’s 20-point plan.

Phase one includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The plan also envisages the rebuilding of Gaza and the establishment of a new governing mechanism without Hamas.

Since October 2023, the Israeli genocidal war has killed over 68,500 people and injured more than 170,300, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.