Donald Trump told former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov that he will stop the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, during an appearance at UFC 302 on Saturday.
The former US President was given a standing ovation as he walked into the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, alongside UFC CEO Dana White to watch the event.
It comes after current US President Joe Biden urged Hamas to accept a new peace deal offered by Israel to end the conflict in Gaza on Friday, stating: ‘It is time for the war to end.’
Trump’s appearance at the MMA event was also one of the first times the former President had been seen since he was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records on Thursday during his hush money trial. It means he became the first former US President to face a criminal trial and it could upend his race to sit in the White House again.
The 77-year-old was pictured holding up his hand in appreciation to the crowd as he made his way towards The Octagon. He was then seen in a video speaking with Nurmagomedov.
The pair shook hands with the former UFC lightweight champion appearing to say: ‘I know you will stop the war in Palestine.’
Former US President Donald Trump (right) appeared to tell Khabib Nurmagomedov (left) that ‘he will stop the war in Palestine’
Trump (right) was given a standing ovation by fans at UFC 302 on Saturday, after he walked into the ring with UFC CEO Dana White
The 77-year-old former US President replied saying: ‘We will stop it. I will stop the war.’
The war between Israel and Hamas began on October 7, 2023. More than 35,000 deaths have been reported in Gaza as a result of the conflict. At least 1,000 people have also died in Israel since October.
On Friday, President Biden outlined a three-phase plan that would begin with an immediate ceasefire, release of hostages and would conclude with the rebuilding of Gaza. It came after an Israeli air strike hit a camp housing displaced Palestinians near Rafah in the southern part of the strip last week. Following the devastating attack, the Hamas-run health ministry stated that at least 45 people died in the incident, while many more were wounded.
Hamas had responded positively to Biden’s proposals and according to Reuters, Hamas said it was ‘ready to engage positively and in a constructive manner’.
Trump, meanwhile, was seen on Saturday watching the MMA event in New Jersey, which saw Dustin Poririer suffer a fifth-round submission defeat against Russian fighter Islam Makhachev, who retained his lightweight title.
As Trump intends to run in the 2024 US Presidential elections, he had also created a new Tik Tok account. He posted his first video on Saturday night inside the venue, with White appearing to announce the former President’s new TikTok channel.
Trump (left) walked into the Prudential Center alongside UFC CEO Dana White (right) on Saturday
Trump (pictured) watched on as Islam Makhachev defeated Dustin Poirier in the main event of the evening
Last week, Joe Biden outlined a three-point plan to end the ongoing conflict in Palestine, and urged Hamas to accept a peace deal being offered by Israel
The conflict, which began on October 7 has claimed the lives of more than 35,000 people in Gaza
The 13-second video shows Trump entering the arena while waving to fans. He also shook hands and took selfies with several members of the audience.
‘The president is now on TikTok’, White said while standing next to Trump during the video.
The Republican has staggeringly amassed 3.4million followers on the platform since posting his first video on Saturday, despite having previously tried to ban the app, because its parent company is based in China.
At the end of the video, which shows the pair walking out to 17,000 fans applauding the President, Trump leans towards the camera asking: ‘That was a good walk on, right?’
He captioned the video: ‘Launching my TikTok at UFC 302.’
Last week, a jury of seven men and five women at Manhattan Criminal Court had found the former President guilty of 34 charges of falsifying business records to conceal money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
Despite calling the verdict a ‘disgrace’, Trump’s presidential campaign raised $52.8million (£41.49m) online in 24 hours after the verdict was announced, per the Financial Times.
Trump (centre) was convicted of 34 charges of falsifying business records by a Manhattan Court on Thursday
Speaking outside the court after the verdict was delivered, Trump Said: ‘This was a disgrace, this was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge.
‘The real verdict is going to be November 5th by the people and they know what happened here, and everybody knows what happened here.
‘We didn’t do anything wrong. I’m a very innocent man. That’s OK, I’m fighting for our country, I’m fighting for our Constitution. Our whole country is being rigged right now. This was done by the Biden administration in order to wound or hurt an opponent, a political opponent.’
He added: ‘I think it’s just a disgrace. And we’ll keep fighting and fight till the end, and we’ll win because our country’s gone to hell.’
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