Kushner's Gaza talks in Middle East end without breakthrough
US special envoy Jared Kushner's meetings with Israeli and Hamas officials wrapped up without major progress on Washington's Gaza peace plan, though both sides agreed no redeployment or reconstruction will begin until Hamas disarms.
Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump's son-in-law and special envoy, met this week with Hamas political chief Khalil al-Hayya and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but the talks produced no decisive shift in the 15-point Gaza peace plan. The visit followed Netanyahu's public rejection earlier this month of the plan's latest version.
The roadmap, unveiled in late July by Trump's Board of Peace, calls for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in exchange for Hamas disarming and giving up control of the territory's governance. Hamas has already agreed to the plan, while Netanyahu insists any withdrawal depends on the group "genuinely" disarming first.
Conditions agreed
Following the Kushner-Netanyahu meeting, an Israeli official told AFP the two sides had agreed that no redeployment of forces or reconstruction would proceed until Hamas is disarmed across all of Gaza. The first step, they said, would require Hamas to hand over its weapons for decommissioning under the supervision of an American general.
Netanyahu's office described the meeting as "deep and constructive," stating that both Israel and the Board of Peace agreed Gaza's disarmament and demilitarisation must be swift and completed before reconstruction begins. The sides also agreed to set up two working groups — one on disarmament and demilitarisation, the other on sanitation, clean water and public health issues for Gazans.
Speaking to Fox News, Kushner said progress on Hamas disarmament could come within as little as 30 days, potentially including the removal of weapons and the filling in of tunnels.
Meanwhile, foreign ministers from Turkey, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates issued a joint statement on Sunday condemning Israel's rejection of the US plan, warning it threatens to derail Trump's efforts to secure lasting peace in the region.