US envoy Jared Kushner and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed in Jerusalem that an American general will verify the disarmament of Hamas, even as Netanyahu insisted Israel will not pull back its forces from Gaza until the militant group completely disarms under a stalled 15-point peace plan.
The high-stakes diplomatic push in Jerusalem follows Kushner’s rare direct talks with Hamas leaders in Egypt aimed at salvaging the 15-point peace plan that the Israeli prime minister rejected earlier in the month. According to a senior Israeli official speaking to Agence France-Presse, the understanding between Netanyahu and Kushner establishes that no redeployment or reconstruction would take place in the Gaza Strip before Hamas is disarmed throughout the territory.
The framework dictates that the initial step toward demilitarization requires Hamas to hand over its weapons for decommissioning under the supervision of an American general. The nascent International Stabilization Force designated to deploy to Gaza is led by US Major General Jasper Jeffers.
Disarmament Verification and the Board of Peace Standoff
The talks test the durability of the Trump administration’s Board of Peace, which oversees the postwar transition. Nickolay Mladenov, the director of the Board of Peace, met with Netanyahu alongside former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to push the implementation forward.
Officials with the Board of Peace maintained that every weapon collected will be fully decommissioned so it cannot be used again, while emphasizing that Israel retains its full right of self-defense.
Hamas, represented in the Egyptian talks by new leader Khalil al-Hayya, signaled its commitment to the roadmap agreed upon on July 30. A Hamas official stated that the group is demanding that the US administration pressure Netanyahu’s government to adhere to and implement the roadmap agreement. The political impasse leaves the territory’s reconstruction hanging in the balance.
Regional Rejection and Domestic Political Pressures
The diplomatic maneuvering unfolds against a backdrop of severe regional backlash.
Netanyahu’s willingness to openly defy Washington stems partly from domestic political vulnerability, compounded by his stated unhappiness over the Trump administration’s decision to halt the US-Israeli war on Iran in late February and pursue a settlement with Tehran.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian and military toll continues to mount.
“Not only those who endanger you right now. These are people who shouldn’t be alive. I’m paying them a compliment by calling them humans.”
Itamar Ben Gvir, National Security Minister, via Al Monitor
The Path Forward for the Second Phase
The immediate viability of the second phase of the Gaza agreement hinges on whether American oversight can bridge the gap between Hamas’s demand for a complete Israeli withdrawal and Netanyahu’s refusal to pull back troops. The roadmap envisions a phased approach where Hamas would surrender weapons to a Palestinian technocratic committee designated to oversee Gaza’s administration.
Yet, fundamental disagreements remain over the sequencing of withdrawals and decommissioning. While Hamas maintains it will not surrender its weapons until Israeli forces pull back, the understanding struck in Jerusalem insists on disarmament verification by General Jeffers as a strict prerequisite for any territorial pullout.
