Netanyahu and Kushner talks make no breakthrough on stalled Gaza deal

Israeli PM again insists troops will not withdraw from strip until Hamas first disarms, but calls meeting constructive

Benjamin Netanyahu has told Donald Trump’s son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner there can be no progress on the stalled Gaza ceasefire deal or an Israeli withdrawal from the coastal strip until Hamas first disarms.

An Israeli official said there had been no breakthrough in ‌the meeting between the pair, saying Netanyahu had made it clear the IDF would not withdraw and would continue to carry out operations in Gaza.

On Sunday, Kushner had met Hamas’s political chief in Egypt, where Hamas insisted Israel must first withdraw its troops from the 60% of Gaza that Israel occupies.

Monday’s three-hour meeting in Israel came after Netanyahu had forcefully rejected a week earlier the US-backed 15-point roadmap to move the ceasefire deal in Gaza forward.

In the meeting with Kushner, Netanyahu once again insisted there could be no Israeli withdrawal or reconstruction without full Hamas disarmament, and the Israeli prime minister requested that a US general supervise the group’s handover of weapons.

A statement from Netanyahu’s office said: “The prime minister and Board of Peace had deep and constructive discussions. It was agreed to establish two working groups, one on disarmament and demilitarisation of Gaza, which both Israel and the Board of Peace are determined should be prompt and completed before any reconstruction happens in Gaza.”

In a separate statement, a Board of Peace official said the meeting was “lengthy, in depth and very productive”. They said: “We agreed with the PM on a path forward. The Israelis are going to give this a chance. Now it’s up to Hamas to show if it truly intends to comply.”

The timing of the meeting, which also included Tony Blair and Nickolay Mladenov, who both sit on Trump’s self-styled Board of Peace, was not auspicious. With Netanyahu struggling in the polls ahead of national elections later this year, Gaza – and Netanyahu’s role in events leading up to Hamas’s surprise attack on Israeli border communities on 7 October 2023 – remains a highly charged issue where Netanyahu is seen as vulnerable.

According to the Haaretz newspaper, the meeting ended with the US agreeing that Israel could continue striking Gaza , apparently contradicting a statement from Trump earlier on Monday that Israel “should not be striking in Gaza”.

While Hamas says it has agreed to the roadmap, which includes disarmament, the group is urging mediators and the Board of Peace to compel Israel to sign on. Officials from the mediating countries Egypt, Qatar and Turkey were also present.

Israel, which under the roadmap must gradually withdraw from Gaza, insists Hamas must fully disarm before any Israeli withdrawal, a sequence representing a long-term impasse. Instead, Israeli troops continue to occupy about 60% of the strip and Netanyahu has previously threatened to take over more.

A day earlier, Kushner met Hamas’s political chief, Khalil al-Hayya, for talks about disarmament, according to a regional official and a Hamas official who both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to reporters.

The Hamas official said the group was committed and waiting for mediators to start the 14-day negotiation period to work out a timetable for implementation. That period requires all parties’ approval of the roadmap to begin.

The Hamas official also said the Hamas leader demanded that Israel halt its attacks on Gaza and withdraw to the so-called “yellow line” dividing the territory before beginning implementation. The yellow line was never precisely defined and Israeli forces have moved beyond it.

According to reports in the Israeli media, Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu’s unwillingness to advance the Gaza ceasefire plan, suggesting he has not fulfilled his commitments under the deal.

The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Sunday that Kushner had been expected to bring a list of concrete measures that the Trump administration wanted to see fulfilled, including a halt to Israeli attacks in Gaza, advancing military withdrawal, and a significant increase in humanitarian aid.

Analysts have noted that Trump’s subcontracting of critical US negotiations to a small coterie of amateur friends, associates and family members – both in the wider Middle East and in Ukraine – is undermining Washington’s diplomatic heft as allies and foes alike have sought to game the inexperienced envoys.

At stake are the lives of about 2 million people in Gaza and reconstruction of the crowded territory now largely controlled by Israeli forces, more than 10 months since the ceasefire ended major military operations.

While a meeting in Egypt last year between Kushner, his fellow envoy Steve Witkoff and Hamas leaders helped clinch the ceasefire, its progress until now had been stalled over the key issue of Hamas’s disarmament.

Several regional powers including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s rejection of the roadmap, saying: “Israel now bears responsibility for obstructing the efforts to bring peace in Gaza.” Other signers included Jordan, Pakistan, Indonesia and the ceasefire mediators.

The foreign ministers’ statement called on the Board of Peace and the US to take “immediate and concrete measures” to keep any party from obstructing the plan’s implementation.

In May, Netanyahu said the next step was to move to 70% control of Gaza, with Israel “tightening the grip” on Hamas “from every direction”.

Israel has killed more than 1,200 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded more than 4,100 since agreeing to the ceasefire on 10 October 2025, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

AFP, Reuters and AP contributed to this article