United States envoy Jared Kushner is ready to fulfill Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday for high-stakes talks in Tel Aviv, following intensive diplomatic sessions in Cairo, Egypt, geared toward advancing the second section of the Gaza ceasefire roadmap.
Kushner, accompanied by Board of Peace Director-Normal Nickolay Mladenov and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, held an unprecedented assembly lasting greater than two hours with a Hamas delegation. The Reuters information company reported that Hamas chief Khalil al-Hayya headed the crew.
The diplomatic push comes as Washington seeks to implement a 15-point roadmap for Gaza — authorised by US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace.
Nevertheless, Netanyahu has publicly rejected the framework, insisting that Israeli forces is not going to withdraw till Hamas is absolutely disarmed, whereas Israel continues army operations in Gaza and expands its unlawful settlements within the occupied West Financial institution.
Here’s what we learn about Kushner’s assembly with Hamas leaders, what he’s anticipated to do subsequent, and what these developments imply for the 15-point plan for Gaza.
Why did Kushner meet Hamas leaders?
Formally, the US describes Hamas as a banned, “terrorist” organisation. Unofficially, the US has lengthy engaged with the Palestinian group, principally by way of mediators.
Political analysts view the direct engagement between the US envoys and the Hamas management as a pivotal recognition of political realities on the bottom.
Mahjoob Zweiri, a lecturer and knowledgeable in Center East politics at Doha Institute for Graduate Research, instructed Al Jazeera that the assembly represents a “sort of American submission to the truth that Hamas is a political drive in Palestinian society that can not be ignored”.
He famous that regardless of Israeli makes an attempt to sideline the group, Washington recognises that Hamas stays an indispensable actor for any lasting settlement.
“This can be a matter Netanyahu was attempting to keep away from,” Zweiri mentioned, including that the Israeli prime minister “is rebellious towards US coverage and worldwide regulation”.
Adel Shadid, an knowledgeable in Israeli affairs, echoed this evaluation, describing the direct Cairo talks as a profound strategic shift that he mentioned can be deeply unnerving for the Israeli management.
“This reveals that there’s a shift within the American place in the direction of Hamas,” Shadid instructed Al Jazeera.
He added that Washington now views the motion in a different way, indicating that “Hamas is now not the issue within the American studying, however reasonably a part of the answer”.
Shadid emphasised that this dynamic “contradicts some of the vital objectives of the struggle, represented by the eradication of Hamas, not solely militarily but additionally politically”.
Ahmed Atawna, director of the Istanbul-based Imaginative and prescient Middle for Political Improvement, instructed Al Jazeera that Palestinian factions presently maintain a strong tactical negotiating posture alongside Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish mediators.
“We are able to say now that the Palestinians and resistance factions — even when conditionally or tactically — are in an excellent negotiating place,” Atawna mentioned.
What’s on the agenda when Kushner meets Netanyahu?
The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that US officers are more and more pissed off that Israel is “attempting to purchase time, introduce new reservations, and alter the sequencing set out within the roadmap”.
Citing sources conversant in the discussions, the newspaper reported that Washington feels “Israel is taking part in video games”.
In keeping with the every day, Kushner’s mandate throughout his Monday assembly with Netanyahu is to not reopen negotiations, with one supply stating that he “shouldn’t be coming to Israel for one more spherical of diplomatic ping pong” however reasonably “is coming to shut”.
The US administration is predicted to push Netanyahu on halting assaults in Gaza, withdrawing forces to the “Yellow Line“, considerably growing humanitarian support to the Palestinian enclave and enabling the rollout of reconstruction and civilian governance mechanisms.
Why does this matter to Trump?
In keeping with some analysts, Trump is more and more invested in forcing a breakthrough over Gaza amid different international coverage setbacks.
“Iran shouldn’t be going the best way he desires, and his try to separate the Lebanese file from the memorandum of understanding didn’t succeed,” Zweiri instructed Al Jazeera. “The one file the place he could make a breakthrough and document it as a victory in his international coverage is the Gaza file now.”
Eight Arab and Muslim nations, together with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkiye, issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s rejection of the roadmap and accusing it of delaying efforts to finish the genocidal struggle on Gaza.
They warned that rejecting the framework “constitutes an specific refusal to proceed with the implementation of the Complete Plan, and immediately threatens to derail the intensive efforts exerted by US President Trump to deliver an finish to the struggle in Gaza”.
Fifteen-point plan: What’s the principle dispute over?
The central dispute centres on the sequencing of obligations underneath the 15-point plan.
The framework requires a phased strategy involving the cessation of army operations, the gradual dismantling and storage of arms, an Israeli army withdrawal and the deployment of an International Stabilization Force working alongside a Palestinian technocratic administration.
Whereas Hamas confirmed its acceptance of the roadmap through the Cairo conferences, it insisted that execution will depend on Israel fulfilling its prior commitments and halting its every day violations of the “ceasefire” that formally got here into impact final October.
Because the broader “ceasefire” settlement took impact, Israeli assaults have killed at the very least 1,260 Palestinians in Gaza.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem acknowledged that the Cairo talks centered on inserting mediators and the Board of Peace in full view of Israeli violations, emphasising that any progress requires binding Israel to the agreed-upon roadmap.
In the meantime, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who additionally met Kushner, reiterated the need for all events to respect the commitments made underneath the October 2025 Sharm el-Sheikh peace framework.
