Trump envoy Kushner meets Hamas leader to push Gaza peace plan
The rare meeting comes a week after Israel rejected Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza.
Jared Kushner, US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, has engaged in unusual discussions with Hamas to advance the US-backed Gaza peace initiative.
A Palestinian official informed the BBC that Trump's son-in-law met with a Hamas delegation, led by Khalil al-Hayya, in Egypt on Sunday.
Last month, Trump's Board of Peace announced an agreement for the "complete disarmament" of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza. However, Israel last week rejected Trump's 15-point plan, which also calls for the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the reconstruction of Gaza under a new civilian Palestinian administration.
Eight Muslim nations issued a statement on Sunday condemning Israel's rejection.
Trump heads the Board of Peace, an international organization initially established to foster peace in Gaza, later expanding its scope to include global conflicts.
Kushner's meeting with Hayya is reportedly the first of its kind at this level since last year's Gaza Strip ceasefire agreement.
Reports indicate that Board of Peace envoys Nickolai Mladenov and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair also participated in the meeting, alongside representatives from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, who have mediated peace efforts.
No official statement has been released regarding the talks, which reportedly focused on concrete steps to decommission Hamas's weapons, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, and humanitarian initiatives.
While in Egypt, Jared Kushner also met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday. According to Israeli media, Kushner, Mladenov, and Blair are scheduled to meet with Netanyahu on Monday to further Trump's plan.
The Israeli prime minister has stated that he requires full Hamas disarmament before implementing the deal.
"Israel rejects the Board of Peace's 15-point document on Gaza. The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed," Netanyahu declared last week, defying Israel's closest ally.
In a joint statement on Sunday, Egypt, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan, and Indonesia asserted that Israel's rejection of the US plan jeopardized Trump's peace efforts.
The ceasefire, which took effect on October 10 last year, remains in place.
However, the Israel Defense Forces have conducted several strikes in Gaza since then, most recently targeting "terrorists" in the Khan Yunis and Nuseirat areas of Gaza, accusing Hamas of violating the truce.
The conflict began with the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages taken.
Israel responded with a military campaign in Gaza, during which over 73,000 people have been killed, according to the territory's health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.
The UN estimates that approximately 1.9 million people, or 90% of Gaza's population, have been displaced since the war began.