Trump unveils Gaza ‘Board of Peace’ at Davos, warns Hamas 'must disarm or....'

Donald Trump at Davos

US President Donald Trump on Thursday warned Hamas that it must disarm under the Gaza ceasefire agreement or face what he described as the “end” of the Palestinian militant group. Speaking at the announcement of the Gaza ‘Board of Peace’ Charter at Davos 2026, Trump said surrendering weapons was non-negotiable for the group’s future.

“They have to give up their weapons, and if they don’t do that, it’s going to be the end of them,” Trump said, adding that Hamas members “were born with rifles in their hands.”

Ahead of signing the founding charter of the Gaza Peace Board, US President Donald Trump said as many as 59 countries were involved in ongoing peace efforts in the Middle East. Calling the new body potentially one of the most consequential ever created, Trump said it was an “enormous honour” for him to serve as its Chairman.

“Last October, we released a plan for the permanent end to the conflict in Gaza, and I’m pleased to say that our vision was unanimously adopted by the United Nations Security Council late last year,” Trump said.

He added that Phase 1 of the plan had helped sustain the Gaza ceasefire while enabling record levels of humanitarian aid, and thanked several countries participating in the process.

Trump also said the US had secured the release of all remaining living hostages. “There were 20 remaining living hostages. We got hundreds out, but the last 20, I said that was going to be a tough one,” he said, adding that the remains of 28 deceased hostages had also been recovered at the request of their families.

“Iran does want to talk, and we’ll talk.”

Turning to Iran, Trump indicated that fresh talks with Tehran could be possible, months after US airstrikes targeted Iran’s nuclear facilities. “We obliterated Iran’s nuclear enrichment capacity with Operation Midnight Hammer. They were two months from having a nuclear weapon,” he said, adding, “Iran does want to talk, and we’ll talk.”

He also pointed to US military action against ISIS in Syria, recalling the killing of ISIS founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during his first term. “We hit it very hard in Syria,” Trump said, noting that he had spoken with Syria’s President and claimed the country was making “tremendous progress.”

Trump said security threats to Europe and the US had reduced significantly over the past year. “It’s a lot different from what it was one year ago. The world was actually on fire,” he said. Referring to Nigeria, he claimed US-backed efforts were targeting terrorist groups responsible for killing Christians. Trump said these gains were possible due to military rebuilding during his first term, adding that the US defence budget now stood at over a trillion dollars.