JERUSALEM, 17 August, 2026 (Kamran) — U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday after holding talks with Hamas leaders, as he seeks to revive a Gaza peace plan that Israel has so far rejected.The meeting came two weeks after Hamas endorsed the latest stage of Trump’s Gaza plan. Netanyahu has refused to support the proposal, insisting that any settlement must ensure that Hamas is “genuinely disarmed.”A diplomatic official confirmed to AFP that the meeting in Jerusalem began late Monday morning.Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, met Hamas’s new leader Khalil al-Hayya in the Egyptian Mediterranean city of El-Alamein on Sunday, according to sources familiar with the discussions.The sources said Kushner demanded that Hamas verify it was giving up its weapons and renounce any future role in governing the Gaza Strip, two key issues for Netanyahu.
Netanyahu was expected to hold closed-door talks with Kushner and Nickolay Mladenov, the high representative for Gaza on Trump’s “Board of Peace,” which is responsible for implementing the plan. Israeli media reported that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, now a senior Board of Peace official, would also attend the meeting.A Hamas official said the group told Kushner it remained committed to the Gaza plan and wanted the United States to put pressure on Netanyahu.“Hamas is demanding that the US administration pressure Netanyahu’s government to adhere to and implement the roadmap agreement,” the official told AFP, adding that Hamas was awaiting the U.S. administration’s response regarding Israel’s position on the agreement.The Trump administration has become increasingly willing to engage directly with Hamas in an effort to end the devastating conflict. Washington also played a role in negotiating the October ceasefire agreement that led to the release of the remaining Israeli hostages.