Jared Kushner is planning to travel to Israel next week for talks focused on the future of Gaza, marking his first visit to the country since January. The trip comes as the Trump administration and the U.S.-led Board of Peace seek to advance the next stage of the Gaza ceasefire framework, including negotiations over security arrangements, governance and reconstruction. Kushner is expected to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials during the visit.
Kushner is expected to travel alongside Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace’s high representative for Gaza, as officials attempt to reach an understanding with Israel over how the next phase of the agreement will be implemented. The delegation is also expected to travel to Egypt, where discussions involving the Palestinian technocratic administration intended to assume civilian governance responsibilities in Gaza have been underway. The Board of Peace was formally established earlier this year to oversee implementation of the broader postwar framework and coordinate international involvement in Gaza’s reconstruction and stabilization.
The next phase centers heavily on the disarmament of Hamas, the transfer of civilian and security authority to a Palestinian technocratic government and the potential withdrawal of Israeli forces from additional areas of Gaza. Washington announced earlier this month that an agreement had been reached with Hamas regarding the decommissioning of its weapons and transfer of governing authority. Implementation, however, remains unresolved. Netanyahu has maintained that Israel will not carry out further withdrawals until Hamas is fully disarmed, creating a significant point of disagreement over the sequencing of the plan.
The upcoming meetings are expected to focus on narrowing those differences and establishing a workable timeline for the coming months. The administration is also seeking to prevent domestic political developments in Israel from delaying implementation as the country moves toward elections. Kushner has remained closely involved in the administration’s Middle East diplomacy and previously helped shape the Board of Peace’s economic and reconstruction proposals for Gaza. His return to the region signals a renewed push to move the ceasefire beyond its initial phase and toward longer-term arrangements for security, governance and reconstruction.
