Trump tells Muslim leaders he won’t let Israel annex West Bank: Report

U.S. President Donald Trump assured Muslim leaders he would prevent Israel from annexing the occupied West Bank, according to six people familiar with the discussions, a Politico report said Wednesday.

Two people described Trump as being firm on the topic during their meeting on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, Politico reported.

Two others familiar with the matter, Politico reported, said the U.S. team presented a white paper outlining the Trump administration’s plan to end the Gaza war, including the promise against West Bank annexation.

Israel has drawn global condemnation over its genocidal military conduct in Gaza, which has caused major destruction and where more than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to local health authorities. A global hunger monitor says part of the territory is suffering from famine.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed optimism after attending a meeting with the leaders of Muslim countries and U.S. President Donald Trump to discuss the current situation in Gaza, on the sidelines of the 80th session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday.

“We have concluded a very productive and positive meeting. I am pleased with the meeting,” Erdoğan told reporters after attending talks.

He noted that the final declaration would be announced shortly.

Trump said that he would be discussing the situation in the besieged Gaza Strip with regional leaders during a “very important” multilateral meeting.

“I think Gaza is going to come along. We’re going to have a very important meeting. And my next meeting actually is going to be very important with leaders in the region,” Trump told reporters as he met with French President Emmanuel Macron.

“We’re going to talk about Gaza. We’re going to see if we can do something about it. We want to stop that. We want to get our hostages back, or their hostages back,” he added.

By agencies