Qatari leader warns Gaza cease-fire at ‘critical moment,’ as President Trump prepares for second phase of peace deal

Qatar’s leader cautioned that the Gaza cease-fire has reached a “critical moment” on Saturday, claiming that international mediators are working “to force the way forward” to the second phase of the fragile peace deal.

The first phase — which involved the exchange of hostages and Israeli troops retreating to a “yellow line”– – is winding down, although Hamas is holding onto the remains of the lone remaining Israeli hostage, Ran Gvili.

The Gvili family has slammed the terror group, accusing it of intentionally holding onto their son’s body.

“We are at the critical moment,” said Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said at an international forum in Doha.

“What we have just done is a pause,” he said. “We cannot consider it yet a ceasefire.

“A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of Israeli forces, there is stability back in Gaza, people can go in and out, which is not the case today.”

Under the US-brokered peace plan’s second phase, Israeli troops would retreat further from the so-called “yellow line” as the terror group disarms, and a transitional authority would take over governance in Gaza.

At the same time, a multinational security force would step in to assume the military’s role.

President Trump is expected to lead an international body, which will be announced by the year-end, tasked with governing the Gaza Strip, an Arab official and a Western diplomat told the Associated Press Friday.

The authority — dubbed the Board of Peace — would oversee Gaza’s reconstruction under a two-year, renewable United Nations mandate, comprising a dozen Middle Eastern and Western leaders.

They would work alongside a committee of Palestinian technocrats managing daily post-war administrational functions.

The announcement is expected when Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meet later this month.

Meanwhile, deployment of the international force could begin in early 2026, sources said, with talks still ongoing over which countries will take part.

Trump plans to announce the transition to the next phase of the historic peace plan in about two weeks, he said on Wednesday.

But Qatar’s prime minister warned that a second phase should be “temporary” and that peace in the region could only take place with the establishment of a Palestinian state — something Israel adamantly opposes.

“If we are just resolving what happened in Gaza, the catastrophe that happened in the last two years, it’s not enough,” said Al Thani. “There is a root for this conflict. And this conflict is not only about Gaza.

“It’s about the West Bank. It’s about the rights of the Palestinians for their state. We are hoping that we can work together with the US administration to achieve this vision at the end of the day.”

With Post Wires