Trump blasts unilateral ‘Palestine’ recognitions as ‘reward to Hamas’ before talking Gaza future with Arab & Muslim leaders

U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his opposition to the unilateral announcements recognizing a “State of Palestine” by several nations during his speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday.

Afterward, he convened a meeting with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, Indonesia and Pakistan to discuss the future of the Gaza Strip, in what he called his “most important meeting.”

“We want to end the war in Gaza. We’re going to end it. Maybe we can end it right now,” Trump told reporters ahead of the meeting, adding it was “very important to me because we’re going to end something that should have probably never started.”

The president also highlighted Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s speech to the Assembly earlier, in which Subianto stressed Israel’s right to security, vowing to recognize Israel once it recognized “Palestine,” and ending his speech with, “Shalom.”

.@POTUS: "Instead of giving in to Hamas’s ransom demands, those who want peace should be united with one message: RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!" pic.twitter.com/rkZoTTCoLD

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 23, 2025

At the time of publication, there was no official statement regarding the outcome of the meeting. Trump didn’t comment after exiting, while his special envoy Steve Witkoff only showed a “thumbs-up.”

At the meeting, Witkoff was expected to reveal details of the U.S. plan he had authored in collaboration with former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.

According to Israel's Channel 12, the plan is thought to demand the release of all hostages and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza before a new governing body will take over the Gaza Strip, without any Hamas involvement and with the active support of Arab countries for the reconstruction of the Strip.

The only leader to offer an assessment of the meeting was Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who described it as “very fruitful.”

Erdoğan was fresh off of slamming Israel’s “genocide” in his speech to the UN assembly: “Every single hour – yes, every hour for the past 23 months – a child has been brutally taken from life by Israel in Gaza,” Erdoğan claimed.

“This is a policy of occupation, forced displacement, exile, genocide, or, more precisely, a policy of mass murder, carried out under the pretext of the Oct. 7 incident,” the Turkish leader said.

In his speech, President Trump touched on a broad range of issues, praising his role in ending several armed conflicts, calling the climate change issue as a “con job” and mocking European states over it, while also warning them that their countries are “going to hell” due to their immigration policies.

Regarding the Gaza War, Trump denounced the unilateral recognition of a “State of Palestine” as a reward for Hamas, reiterating similar assessments by U.S. and Israeli officials.

.@POTUS on recognizing Palestine: "It honors Hamas... October 7th was one of the most savage days in the history of the world... We're talking about babies being sliced in half. You're talking about young children having their heads chopped off. You can't forget that." pic.twitter.com/iNKysWcDfw

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) September 23, 2025

Trump said he had been “deeply engaged” in the ceasefire talks but blamed Hamas for their collapse.

“Unfortunately, Hamas has repeatedly rejected reasonable offers to make peace,” said Trump. “We can’t forget October 7, can we?”

“Now, as if to encourage continued conflict, some of this body is seeking to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state.”

“The rewards would be too great for Hamas terrorists for their atrocities. This would be a reward for these horrible atrocities, including October 7, even while they refuse to release the hostages or accept a ceasefire,” he added.

“Instead of giving in to Hamas’s ransom demands, those who want peace should be united with one message: Release the hostages now,” Trump declared.

Trump also met with French President Emmanuel Macron, who, together with Saudi Arabia, had led the push for recognition, on the sidelines of the summit.

Sitting next to Macron, Trump stressed, “I’m on the side of Israel. I’ve been on the side of Israel, really, my whole life, and we’re going to get a solution, and it’s going to be a solution that’s good for everybody.”

Asked about France’s recognition of Palestine, Trump charged, “I think it honors Hamas and you can’t do that because of October 7. You just can’t do that.”