Trump says Gaza deal reached; Iran strikes US base in Kuwait

US President Donald Trump has announced on social media that an agreement has been reached under which Hamas would disarm and Israel would pull its forces out of Gaza. He said the deal would be implemented in carefully structured phases: once disarmament is completed, Israeli forces would withdraw, and an International Stabilization Force would work with a new Palestinian police force to ensure safety for Gaza’s residents and neighbours.

Senior Hamas officials have reportedly accepted the plan, but a key sticking point has already emerged: the order of steps. Ghazi Hamad, a member of the Hamas negotiating team, told Al Jazeera that the group would not take any action on disarmament before Israel withdraws from the Strip. Earlier, an Israeli official told Reuters the proposed terms were not satisfactory, reiterating that Israel demands complete disarmament of Hamas and full demilitarisation of Gaza as a precondition for any process.

The announcement comes nine months after a US-brokered ceasefire was signed. Talks between Israel and Hamas had largely stalled over implementation of the second phase, which includes disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza.

In a separate escalation, Iran’s army said it launched drone strikes on Friday targeting US military facilities at Ahmad al-Jaber airbase in Kuwait, including fighter aircraft shelters, satellite communications systems and equipment storage facilities. Iranian state media said the attacks were retaliation for recent US strikes, including one on a home on Qeshm Island, where local media reported three family members were killed. The US military’s Central Command had not commented.

Separately, Yemeni sources believe Saudi Arabia is preparing a major military offensive against the Houthis by sea and possibly by land in central Yemen, aiming to break the blockade threatening its oil exports through the southern Red Sea.

Other developments: according to Kpler data, 25 commodity vessels passed through the Bab el-Mandeb strait on Thursday, while traffic in the Strait of Hormuz remained low, with only two tankers transiting. Analysts expect large oil company profits as fighting between Iran and the US disrupts petroleum shipments; six of Europe’s largest oil companies posted combined first-quarter profits of $22bn, up 43% year-on-year. Saudi Arabia announced a 14-country maritime defence alliance. Kuwait’s military said an Iranian strike hit a Chinese firm’s building, killing a worker, and Jordan shot down five missiles launched from Iran. Egypt said it was analysing drone fragments after an unprecedented strike on one of its ports, with authorities confirming that a fire on two gas vessels in Damietta port, one US-owned, resulted from a drone attack.