PM Modi invited by Egypt’s President Sisi to Trump-backed Gaza peace conference
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited by US President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to attend an international peace summit in Sharm El-Sheikh on October 13, The Indian Express reported on Sunday. The conference seeks to end the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip.
According to the report, the invitation was extended to New Delhi on Saturday. However, the Prime Minister’s Office has not yet confirmed Modi’s participation in the meeting.
The Egyptian Presidential spokesperson said the summit would be jointly chaired by Trump and El-Sisi, with participation expected from over 20 world leaders. “The summit aims to bring an end to the war in the Gaza Strip, advance peace and stability across the Middle East, and usher in a new era of regional security,” the spokesperson said.
Last Thursday, Prime Minister Modi congratulated Trump on the initial success of a US-brokered Gaza peace plan. “Spoke to my friend, President Trump, and congratulated him on the success of the historic Gaza peace plan,” Modi posted on X, adding that both leaders also discussed the “good progress” in ongoing trade negotiations and agreed to stay in close touch.
Modi also held discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the same plan. “Called my friend, Prime Minister Netanyahu, to congratulate him on the progress made under President Trump’s Gaza peace plan,” he wrote, welcoming the agreement on hostage releases and expanded humanitarian aid for Gaza. “Reaffirmed that terrorism in any form or manifestation is unacceptable anywhere in the world,” the Prime Minister said.
The US-mediated plan envisions a halt to hostilities in Gaza, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the redevelopment of the territory into a “deradicalised, terror-free zone” that poses no threat to neighbouring states. The first phase, already in motion, included a ceasefire and the release of several hostages captured by Hamas during its October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, which killed around 1,200 people. Hamas had taken 251 hostages, with more than 50 still in captivity.
According to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, Israeli operations have killed over 66,000 Palestinians since the start of the conflict. The region continues to face a severe humanitarian crisis marked by shortages of food, water, and medicine. The World Health Organization recently described malnutrition levels in Gaza as “alarming.”
The Gaza issue also featured in Modi’s recent discussions with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Mumbai. “On the issues of the Ukraine conflict and Gaza, India supports all efforts to restore peace through dialogue and diplomacy,” Modi said. Starmer added that progress on the Gaza peace plan would bring “immense relief, especially for families of hostages and civilians affected by the conflict.”
