US President Donald Trump was two hours into a roundtable on Antifa with conservative influencers in the White House’s Blue Room on Wednesday when Secretary of State Marco Rubio caught his eye. Rubio told Trump he had some news for him. The president invited him to come in, and Rubio whispered something in Trump’s ear before handing him a handwritten note.
An Associated Press photographer covering the event zoomed in on the handwriting on White House stationery that read, “Very close. You need to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce the deal first.”
#WATCH | Looks like we’re very close to a ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel
Rubio handed Trump a note saying:
“You need to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first”#deal #Israel pic.twitter.com/MFYfTgaDmt
— Reality Index (@Reality_Index) October 8, 2025
Trump told the gathering, “I was just given a note by the secretary of state saying that we’re very close to a deal on the Middle East, and they’re gonna need me pretty quickly.”
Source: X @MarksLarks
The note’s urgent tone came as Trump’s top Middle East adviser, Steve Witkoff, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and other senior officials joined a third day of peace talks between Israel and Hamas at an Egyptian resort Wednesday – a sign that negotiators aim to dive deeply into the toughest issues of an American plan to end the war in Gaza.
Still, even after receiving the note, Trump continued with his engagements and took questions from the media, making Rubio visibly anxious.
Nearly 10 minutes after his initial comments about leaving, Trump said, “I have to go now to try and solve some problems in the Middle East – although I’m very well represented by our secretary of state. He could probably do an even better job than me, but who knows?”
“We don’t want to take any chances. So we’re going to go and do that… We’re gonna get peace in the Middle East,” he said, asking Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to continue in his absence.
Nearly two hours after Rubio initially passed Trump the note, at 6:51 pm, Trump triumphantly took to his Truth Social platform to announce that all parties have agreed to the first phase of the deal.
“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, saying that means all hostages will be released “very soon” while Israel will withdraw their troops “to an agreed-upon line.”
Trump added: “This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!”
Trump is known for taking credit for events and accomplishments, often exaggerating his personal influence. Last month, he all but nominated himself for the Nobel Peace Prize, claiming in his address to the United Nations that he has “ended seven un-endable wars.”
While he certainly contributed to bringing peace between some long-standing foes, his role in brokering ceasefires in some of the other conflicts he has boasted about ending has been disputed by the nations involved.