Israeli officials said on Monday that White House envoy Jared Kushner had aligned with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s position that Israeli forces should continue operations in Gaza until Hamas fully disarms, following a four-hour meeting in Jerusalem.
The Israeli account came a day after Kushner held a rare direct meeting with Hamas’s political leadership in Egypt, as Washington tries to advance a stalled U.S.-backed plan to end the war. While Kushner and Netanyahu met, the Israeli military said its forces continued operations in several areas of Gaza as well as at the Ali Taher heights in southern Lebanon, and separately warned that Hamas was projecting a false image of moderation while working to rebuild its military capacity.
A U.S. official said Kushner told Netanyahu that Washington wants Israel to take incremental steps in Gaza to test whether Hamas’s stated willingness to disarm is genuine, rather than insisting on full disarmament before any withdrawal begins. The two sides agreed to form two working groups, one on demilitarisation and one on humanitarian conditions in Gaza, and the official described the meeting as narrowing some gaps while leaving other differences unresolved.
Kushner arrived in Israel after meeting Hamas leaders and mediators from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey in Egypt on Sunday, where an Arab diplomat said Hamas indicated it would only begin disarming if Netanyahu publicly commits to the broader plan. Hamas has said it accepts the 15-point framework, which envisions it gradually handing over weapons as Israel carries out corresponding withdrawals, but Netanyahu has rejected the proposal, insisting Hamas disarm fully first.
Netanyahu, who faces an October 27 election in which he has made Israel’s continued military presence in Gaza a central campaign theme, reportedly told Kushner that moving ahead with the framework was politically difficult ahead of the vote.
