Secretary of State Marco Rubio was caught leaning towards President Donald Trump’s ear during a briefing at the White House on Wednesday and handed him a handwritten note with urgent instructions.

AP Chief Photographer in Washington Evan Vucci shared the photo on his X account where Rubio appears to whisper something to the president while discreetly delivering the message. The note referenced a Middle East deal and said the announcement needed to happen soon.

“You need to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first,” the note said, as seen on the photo.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio whispers in the ear of President Donald Trump after handing him a note about a Middle East deal saying “Very close. We need you to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first” pic.twitter.com/ISEJ2RsUOq

— Evan Vucci (@evanvucci) October 8, 2025

Hamas said Friday it is willing to release the remaining hostages and step down from power under Trump’s proposed ceasefire deal if Palestinian groups and regional allies support the move. The group said more talks are needed on the remaining terms, and it is unclear how Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will respond.

Trump responded later and said that Hamas’ response marked a major step toward ending the war. He credited allied nations for pressuring the group and said the region is very close to peace.

“I just want to let you know that this is a very special day, maybe unprecedented in many ways. It is unprecedented, but thank you all and thank you all to those great countries that helped! We were given a tremendous amount of help. Everybody was unified in wanting this war to end and seeing peace in the Middle East. And we’re very close to achieving that,” Trump said.

Palestinians in Gaza urged Hamas to accept the terms to end years of instability. Israeli operations have displaced more than 33,000 people, and nearly a quarter of Gaza’s population now faces famine, according to United Nations data.

Trump’s plan orders Hamas to release all captives at once and hand control of Gaza to an “International Stabilization Force,” with him and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the helm. The proposal also includes a role for Palestinian experts in the new governing body.

The White House and Rubio’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screen Capture/CSPAN)

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