PM Modi gets invitation for Sharm-el-Sheikh Gaza Peace Summit co-chaired by Trump

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has received an official invitation from Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to attend the upcoming Gaza Peace Summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, as per media reports. However, PM Modi will not attend in person. Instead, the Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that Minister of State Kirti Vardhan Singh will represent India at the high-level summit.

Gaza summit in Egypt

Egypt will host an international summit on Monday in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh to finalize an agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza, an Egyptian presidential spokesperson announced on Saturday.

The summit will be attended by more than 20 world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, the spokesperson said. The event will be co-chaired by Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, according to the official statement.

"The summit aims 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. This summit comes in light of US President Trump's vision for achieving peace in the region and his relentless efforts to end conflicts around the world," the Egyptian presidency said in a statement.

However, it is unclear how the summit itself can formally end the war. Israel has said it will not agree to end the war until it is satisfied that Hamas no longer poses and threat and has no part in the rule of Gaza.

Hamas unlikely to attend

Palestinian terrorist group Hamas has announced it will boycott the officialsigning of the Gaza peace deal in Egypt due to some disagreements with the plan that has been formulated by US President Donald Trump. Hossam Badran, Hamas' political bureau member, also stressed that the negotiations over the second phase will likely be tough because of some "complexities and difficulties".

Israel is not attending the summit, and the Prime Minister’s Office has not explained its absence.

The summit comes after weeks of intense conflict sparked by Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which caused heavy casualties on both sides. As part of a tentative agreement, Israel has agreed to release 250 prisoners and 1,700 Gazans detained since the start of the war, in exchange for the release of 47 Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

A multinational task force, coordinated by the US military and likely including Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, and the UAE, will oversee security arrangements. Despite these efforts, the future of peace remains uncertain, as major stakeholders continue to disagree on disarmament and political control in Gaza.