Trump Calls on Israel to Stop Gaza Strikes as Kushner Meets Netanyahu/ TezzBuzz/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ President Donald Trump said Israel should stop striking Gaza because Hamas has agreed to surrender its weapons under a U.S.-backed road map. Jared Kushner held more than three hours of talks with Benjamin Netanyahu and Board of Peace officials after meeting Hamas representatives in Egypt. The two sides remain divided over sequencing: Israel demands Hamas disarm first, while Hamas wants Israeli attacks to end and troops to withdraw as it transfers its weapons.
Quick Look
- Trump said Israel should stop carrying out strikes in Gaza.
- He said Hamas has agreed to give up its weapons.
- Netanyahu rejected Trump’s 15-point road map last week.
- Israel resumed near-daily strikes after a brief pause.
- Kushner met Netanyahu and Board of Peace officials Monday.
- The discussions lasted more than three hours.
- Kushner held direct talks with Hamas officials Sunday.
- Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya attended part of those meetings.
- Hamas and Israel disagree over which side must act first.
- Israel says it will not withdraw until Hamas disarms.
- Hamas wants strikes to end and troops to pull back during disarmament.
- Officials agreed Israel would retain the right to respond to threats.
- The October ceasefire enabled an exchange of hostages and prisoners.
- Nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners were released.
- Approximately 2 million Gazans remain in uncertain conditions.
- Kushner’s plan seeks to transfer authority to a Palestinian civilian body.
- Tony Blair and Nickolay Mladenov joined Monday’s delegation.
- Israeli elections are scheduled for October.
Deep Look
Trump tells Israel to stop striking Gaza
TEL AVIV — President Donald Trump said Israel should stop attacking targets in Gaza as his administration attempts to revive a stalled plan for disarming Hamas and ending the war.
Trump made the remarks Monday while his envoy and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The comments represented a rare public disagreement between Trump and Netanyahu, who rejected the president’s 15-point Gaza road map last week.
Israel resumed near-daily strikes after a brief pause, targeting Palestinian militants it says were involved in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack and hostage-taking.
Trump says Hamas will surrender weapons
Trump told Fox News that continued Israeli strikes were unnecessary because Hamas had accepted disarmament.
“Ultimately, they are giving up their guns,” Trump said, according to Fox chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst.
Trump announced in late July that Hamas had agreed to the broad road map.
Under the proposal, Hamas would eventually surrender its weapons to Palestinian authorities as Israeli troops gradually withdrew from Gaza.
The plan is intended to end Hamas’ military control while creating conditions for a new civilian administration and reconstruction.
Israel and Hamas disagree over sequencing
The central dispute involves which side must act first.
Israel refuses to withdraw its forces until Hamas has fully disarmed.
Hamas wants Israeli strikes to end and troops to pull back while it transfers and decommissions its weapons.
That disagreement has stalled the plan even though both sides have indicated support for some of its broader objectives.
Trump’s call for Israel to stop attacking Gaza placed additional pressure on Netanyahu to accept a coordinated process.
Kushner holds extended talks with Netanyahu
The meeting between Kushner, Netanyahu and Board of Peace officials lasted more than three hours.
People familiar with the discussions said the participants agreed that Israeli forces would not redeploy from Gaza until Hamas surrendered its weapons.
They also agreed that Israel would retain the ability to respond to security threats.
“Israel retains its full right of self-defense: If Hamas resorts to terror, violence or attempts to rearm, Israel will retain the right to act accordingly,” a Board of Peace official said.
The conclusions appear unlikely to satisfy Hamas, which seeks an end to Israeli strikes and a military pullback as it hands over weapons.
Kushner meets Hamas in Egypt
Kushner met Hamas officials Sunday in the Egyptian city of El Alamein.
The rare direct talks took place one day before his meeting with Netanyahu.
Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya attended part of the discussions, according to people familiar with the meetings.
Kushner urged Hamas to take the first concrete steps toward transferring governing authority to a new civilian organization.
He also pressed the group to begin decommissioning its weapons.
Kushner assured Hamas that Israel would take corresponding steps if the group moved forward, according to people familiar with the talks.
Trump grows frustrated with stalled road map
Kushner’s visits to Egypt and Israel signaled increasing frustration in the White House over the lack of progress.
The Trump administration has promoted the Gaza initiative as a major diplomatic achievement.
Its difficulty implementing the plan comes as Washington also struggles to wind down its war with Iran.
The administration now faces the challenge of persuading Hamas to begin disarming while convincing Israel to stop attacks and commit to a gradual withdrawal.
October ceasefire halted heaviest fighting
Trump’s broader Gaza peace initiative began with an October ceasefire that halted the most intense phase of combat.
The agreement secured the release of the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
In exchange, Israel released nearly 2,000 Palestinians from its prisons.
However, progress stalled after the exchange as Hamas resisted disarming and Israel continued carrying out strikes inside the enclave.
Gazans remain displaced and dependent on aid
The stalemate has left approximately 2 million people in Gaza facing continued uncertainty.
Most of the population has been displaced by the war.
Many Palestinians are living in overcrowded tent camps or damaged buildings and remain dependent on humanitarian assistance.
The continued fighting and lack of a governing agreement have prevented large-scale reconstruction from beginning.
Trump’s latest road map is designed to restart the disarmament process so political authority can pass to a new Palestinian civilian body.
Netanyahu insists Hamas must be eliminated
Netanyahu and much of Israel’s political establishment maintain that Hamas must be destroyed as both a military and governing organization before the war can end.
That position makes it difficult for Netanyahu to accept a phased plan that allows Israeli forces to withdraw while disarmament remains incomplete.
Political pressure is also increasing ahead of Israel’s October elections.
Polling indicates that Netanyahu’s party is losing support, potentially making concessions on Gaza more politically risky.
Israel resumes strikes after brief pause
Israel temporarily reduced attacks in Gaza in early August following talks involving Israeli officials and Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace’s chief Gaza envoy.
The pace of strikes later increased again.
Mladenov joined Kushner’s delegation for Monday’s talks with Netanyahu.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, another senior Board of Peace official, also participated.
Their involvement reflects the administration’s effort to coordinate Hamas’ disarmament, Israel’s withdrawal, civilian governance and Gaza’s reconstruction under a single road map.
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