Kushner and Hamas delegation discuss Gaza plan in Egypt
Hamas leaders met on Sunday in Egypt with Jared Kushner, brother-in-law of US President Donald Trump and his special envoy, who is seeking to advance a peace plan for Gaza that Israel has rejected, according to sources familiar with the matter told by the AFP news agency.
The movement reaffirmed its commitment to the agreement during the meeting, while Kushner urged comprehensive disarmament and an end to any future role for Hamas in governing Gaza, according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity due to diplomatic sensitivities.
Sources had previously told AFP on Sunday that the meeting, which has not been officially confirmed by the United States, was taking place in Alamein, a city in northern Egypt that has played a mediating role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for years.
Kushner also met with representatives from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, the mediating countries in the ceasefire agreement concerning Gaza, as well as with Nikolai Mladenov, the High Representative for Gaza in the “Peace Council” established by Donald Trump to implement the agreement, according to a spokesperson for the Egyptian Prime Minister’s office.
The spokesperson noted that the mediators reaffirmed “their support for US efforts aimed at establishing stability and calm in the Gaza Strip,” but warned “against any attempts to undermine the success achieved so far in implementing the decisions” of the agreement signed in Sharm El-Sheikh in October last year.
Kushner had met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday in Alamein, while Hamas Political Bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh met with Egyptian Intelligence Chief Hassan Rashad.
These meetings come as part of US efforts to bridge differences between Israel and Hamas regarding the implementation of President Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza permanently.
In late July, Hamas agreed to a US roadmap aimed at launching the second phase of the American plan, which calls for the disarmament of the Islamic movement and an Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian territory.
Foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Turkey, and Qatar condemned in a joint statement published by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) “Israel’s explicit rejection of the roadmap to complete the implementation of US President Donald Trump’s comprehensive plan to end the conflict in Gaza, which was endorsed by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803, as well as Israel’s rejection of the establishment of a Palestinian state.”
A Hamas source, speaking on condition of anonymity, stated that “mediators informed Hamas that US envoy Jared Kushner would hold a meeting with Hamas leadership in the presence of Egyptian and Qatari officials.”
For years, the United States has refused any contact with Hamas, which it designates as a terrorist organization and which launched the unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, igniting the Gaza war.
A second Hamas source indicated that the United States had requested clarifications from the movement on several points, including “the actual gathering, reorganization, and storage of weapons, not merely symbolic collection, as well as Hamas’s complete relinquishment of governance over Gaza.”
Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007, announced in early July the dissolution of its civil administration, expressing its intention to transfer its responsibilities to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a body established by the “Peace Council” composed of Palestinian technical cadres and tasked with overseeing the transitional phase in the Palestinian territory.
During the meeting between Sisi and Kushner, it was reiterated that all parties must adhere to their commitments under the Gaza ceasefire agreement, according to a statement by Mohamed El-Shenawy, spokesperson for the Egyptian President.
For his part, Hamas’s delegation, led by al-Haya, reaffirmed the movement’s commitment to implementing the US plan during its first visit to Egypt since its appointment in late July, according to Egypt’s official Middle East News Agency.
A senior official from the Palestinian Islamic movement told Agence France-Presse that the meeting with Rashad focused on “developments in the negotiations and efforts to compel Israel to agree to the deal, which includes a 15-point roadmap, and to begin its implementation.”
The Peace Council, tasked with implementing the peace plan, indicated that Kushner was scheduled to visit Israel next week, along with Egypt, accompanied by Nikolai Mladenov, the Council’s High Representative for Gaza affairs.
Hamas and Israel are exchanging accusations of violating the ceasefire agreement reached last October.
On the ground, several people were injured on Sunday in Israeli airstrikes that targeted a house in central Gaza, according to Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defense.
The Israeli military said the strikes came in response to a threat from the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement.
The number of Palestinian fatalities in Gaza has reached at least 1,262 since the ceasefire began, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.
Meanwhile, Israel reported the deaths of five soldiers and one civilian contractor working for the Ministry of Defense.
