Gaza: Jared Kushner met with Hamas leaders in Egypt

Jared Kushner, a US envoy, met with Hamas leaders in Egypt on Sunday as part of Washington's efforts to advance a peace plan for Gaza. The meeting occurred ahead of Kushner's visit to Israel, aiming to bridge differences between Hamas and Israel regarding the implementation of the plan initiated by former President Donald Trump.

Sources close to the discussions revealed that during the meeting, Hamas reiterated its commitment to the American roadmap, which was agreed upon in late July. This roadmap is intended to initiate the second phase of the plan, involving the disarmament of the Islamist movement and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Palestinian territory.

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has officially rejected the plan, demanding a "genuine" disarmament of Hamas. Kushner, during his meeting with Hamas leadership, emphasized the necessity of complete disarmament and insisted that Hamas should have no role in Gaza's future governance. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity.

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total disarmament of the Palestinian movement and the absence of any future role for Hamas in the governance of Gaza.

Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007, announced in July the dissolution of its civil administration. It stated its intention to transfer responsibilities to the National Committee for Gaza Administration (NCAG), an entity established by the "Peace Council" comprising Palestinian technocrats tasked with overseeing the territory's transition.

Kushner, who is also former President Trump's son-in-law, had previously met with officials from mediating countries like Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, as well as Nikolay Mladenov, the UN's Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. These meetings were part of the broader effort to implement the peace plan. Meanwhile, Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya also met with Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rachad.

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Hamas reaffirmed its commitment to the peace plan.