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Kushner meets Netanyahu in effort to break logjam over Gaza
President Donald Trump’s plan for the future of the war-ravaged Gaza Strip been stalled for months
JERUSALEM — Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and former White House adviser, was meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel in Jerusalem on Monday in an effort to break a logjam over Trump’s plan for the future of the war-ravaged Gaza Strip.
The plan had been stalled for months over Hamas’ refusal to lay down its arms, as well as Israel’s frequent airstrikes and military operations beyond the withdrawal line it agreed to in the ceasefire reached in October 2025. Israel has also failed to meet its commitments to allow specified amounts of fuel and other necessities into Gaza.
Trump’s announcement last month that his Board of Peace had secured Hamas’ agreement to disarm briefly raised hopes for progress. A 15-point “road map” that Hamas agreed to called for the militant group to lay down its weapons in a phased approach that would be matched by Israel withdrawing from parts of Gaza.
But Netanyahu rejected the deal this month, insisting that Israel would not pull back within Gaza, let alone from Gaza, until Hamas had disarmed completely.
Kushner and members of the Board of Peace flew to Israel for Monday’s meeting after holding talks with representatives of Hamas, including its political leader, Khalil al-Hayya, on Sunday in El-Alamein, Egypt.
Hamas officials presented Kushner with a list of what they contended were Israel’s violations of the ceasefire, according to a Hamas official and two people briefed on the talks, and he promised to speak to Netanyahu about Israel upholding its end of the agreement.
Kushner, in turn, asked the Hamas representatives to move ahead with disarmament, the two people said. But they replied that Israel first needed to keep its commitments under the ceasefire, and they warned that the road map they agreed to last month was not open for changes.
The Board of Peace’s deal with Hamas says that, as part of the disarmament process, Israel should first uphold its side of the ceasefire. But political considerations are widely believed to be preventing Netanyahu from upholding all of Israel’s commitments under that deal.
The Israeli leader faces a tough campaign for a new term in elections to be held Oct. 27, and his right-wing coalition is behind in the polls. Any concessions to Hamas or perceived softening of his posture toward Gaza could subject him to attacks from allies he considers vital.
Political considerations are also important for the Board of Peace and for the Trump administration. With the U.S. midterm elections approaching in November and the anniversary of the ceasefire in early October, a failure to reach an agreement that could pave the way for reconstruction in Gaza could be highly embarrassing for the board, for the White House, and for its approach to the Middle East.
This article originally appeared in the New York Times.