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A urgent handwritten message delivered to Donald Trump by his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, indicated that an announcement regarding a ceasefire deal in Gaza could be made very soon.

Captured in a photograph, the note's contents encouraged the president to authorize a post on his Truth Social platform to break the news first.

"Nearly there," it stated, as shown in the photo. "You are needed to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first."

Shortly after the note was seen, Trump published on his platform, expressing he was "very proud" to announce the initial stage of the deal.

"This indicates that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will pull back their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace," he wrote.

The Moment the Note Was Passed to Trump

Trump was conducting a discussion with conservative influencers about antifa when Rubio, positioned in the back corner of the White House's Blue Room, caught his eye.

He wanted to share an update for Trump, he said, but it would have to wait until after the press departed. Then, Rubio passed the president the message.

"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 soon," Trump said. "So we'll take a couple of more questions."

Background of the Negotiations

The meeting had already been going on for more than an hour when Rubio came forward. The president welcomed him to come in, and Rubio whispered something to Trump before giving him the note.

The note's pressing nature coincided with Trump's top Middle East adviser, Steve Witkoff, Qatari PM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and other senior officials participated in a third day of negotiations between Israel and Hamas at an Red Sea location – a indication that negotiators are working to tackle the most challenging topics of a US plan to end the war in Gaza.

Trump's Comments on Middle East Travel

Trump had kicked off the gathering by informing assembled journalists that he intended to travel to the Middle East "toward the end of the week" and could even "visit multiple locations" in the region to Cairo and perhaps Gaza as US negotiators neared completion of a deal.

Still, even after Rubio passed Trump the note, Trump continued to talk to the influencers and take questions from the media as the secretary of state became noticeably restless.

Wrapping Up the Event

Almost 10 minutes after his initial comments about leaving, Trump declared: "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 likely do an more effective job than me, but who knows."

"We don't want to take any chances. So we're going to go and do that," Trump added.

He then suggested that Pam Bondi and Kristi Noem remain and take questions in his stead. Nonetheless, Trump continued to take questions before the event finally broke up without Cabinet members staying.

"We will achieve peace in the Middle East," Trump concluded by saying. "That's what we want to do."