When it comes to the Nobel Peace Prize, Donald Trump isn’t exactly feeling zen. The US President has taken a jab at Barack Obama, saying his predecessor “got it for doing nothing” — while touting his own role in bringing peace to Gaza.With the Nobel announcement just around the corner, Trump isn’t waiting for the committee’s verdict — he’s already campaigning for the prize.“He got a prize for doing nothing… He got elected, and they gave it to Obama for doing absolutely nothing but destroying our country… Obama was not a good president,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, where he was joined by the Prime Minister of Finland following the historic US-brokered peace deal between Israel and Hamas.Obama received the prestigious award in 2009, eight months into his first term, in a decision that shocked the world. Even the liberal New York Times described it as “very premature” and argued the Nobel “should have a higher bar.”
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Trump made these remarks as he announced his intention to travel to Egypt for the signing of the deal in the coming days, Daily Mail reported.“I’ve stopped eight wars, so that’s never happened before — but they’ll have to do what they do. Whatever they do is fine. I know this: I didn’t do it for that, I did it because I saved a lot of lives.”The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced at 11 (CEST) on Friday in Oslo, Norway. The frontrunner was Sudan’s Emergency Response Rooms, a community-led network that had provided health aid across the country since war erupted in April 2023.Trump announced on Wednesday that he had secured a historic peace deal between Israel and Hamas, defying all expectations despite his previous deal-making record.The agreement brought an end to two years of fighting that saw 70,000 Palestinians killed since the October 7 attack, which left 1,200 people dead and another 250 taken hostage by Hamas. The president confirmed that the remaining hostages, believed to number around 20 survivors, would be released to Israel on Monday or Tuesday.“I’ll be there,” Trump confirmed. Chief Hamas negotiator Khalil al-Hayya stated earlier, “We have received assurances from the brotherly mediators and the US administration, who have confirmed that the war is completely over.” He promised that 250 Palestinians serving life sentences in Israel would be freed, alongside 1,700 Palestinians from Gaza who were arrested since the war began.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet was poised to vote on the deal, which would see all remaining hostages freed within 72 hours of the ceasefire. “It will be a day of joy,” Trump said, noting that the Israeli hostages held by Hamas “should be released Monday or Tuesday.” Trump mentioned that discussions were still ongoing to coordinate the release of the hostages.
