US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Jared Kushner has arrived in Israel and is expected to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, following reported discussions with Hamas over a US-backed Gaza peace plan.
A Palestinian official told the BBC that Kushner met a delegation led by Hamas’s new leader, Khalil al-Hayya, in Egypt on Sunday. The meeting was described as the first engagement at this level since a ceasefire agreement for Gaza was reached last year.
Board of Peace envoys Nickolay Mladenov and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair were reportedly present, alongside representatives from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey. No official statement was issued on the talks, which reportedly addressed practical steps to decommission Hamas weapons, an Israeli troop withdrawal and humanitarian efforts.
Kushner also met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi during his visit to Egypt. Israeli media reported that Mladenov and Blair were also due to meet Netanyahu on Monday in an effort to advance Trump’s proposal.
Dispute over roadmap
Trump’s Board of Peace said last month that it had secured an agreement on the complete disarmament of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza. Israel rejected the group’s 15-point Gaza document last week. The proposal also calls for Israeli forces to withdraw and for Gaza to be rebuilt under a new civilian Palestinian administration.
Netanyahu has said Israel will not withdraw troops before Hamas is genuinely disarmed. Hamas has called on mediators and the Board of Peace to pressure Israel to approve the roadmap for the next phase.
Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan and Indonesia said in a joint statement on Sunday that Israel’s rejection threatened Trump’s peace efforts.
A ceasefire that took effect on 10 October last year remains in place, although both Israel and Hamas accuse one another of violations. The Israel Defense Forces have carried out near-daily strikes, according to the report. The Israeli military said it targeted Hamas and Islamic Jihad members in Khan Younis and Nuseirat on Sunday, while local medics said people in a Khan Younis tent camp were injured.
Source: BBC News
