Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Aug 17
Kushner Reaches Israel to Push 15-Point Gaza Plan After Rare Hamas Talks
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Aug 17

Kushner Reaches Israel to Push 15-Point Gaza Plan After Rare Hamas Talks

3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Aug 17

Summary

  • Jared Kushner arrived in Israel on Monday to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after holding rare talks in Egypt with Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya on implementing the US-backed Gaza roadmap.
  • The reported talks focused on concrete steps for Hamas disarmament, Israeli troop withdrawal and humanitarian measures, with Board of Peace envoys Nickolay Mladenov and Tony Blair alongside Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish mediators.
  • Israel rejected Trump's 15-point plan last week, with Netanyahu insisting the IDF will not withdraw until Hamas is genuinely disarmed; Hamas has since urged mediators to compel Israel to approve the next steps.
  • Eight Muslim countries on Sunday condemned Israel's rejection, while Netanyahu faces October election pressure from hardline coalition partners and broad Israeli skepticism that Hamas will actually disarm.
  • The diplomacy comes as the October 2025 ceasefire formally holds but near-daily Israeli strikes continue; Gaza authorities say more than 1,200 people have been killed since the truce.

Insights

With Israel demanding disarmament first and Hamas refusing without withdrawal, who will blink first in this high-stakes standoff?
Could proposed legal immunity for international peacekeepers in Gaza become the hidden stumbling block that derails the entire reconstruction plan?