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U.S. special envoy Jared Kushner delivered a stark warning to the Palestinian group Hamas on Monday, saying it must honor its commitment to disarm in Gaza or face an Israeli military operation to "finish the job." Kushner made the remarks after a 48-hour diplomatic sprint that took him from a rare face-to-face meeting with Hamas leaders in Cairo to a nearly four-hour session with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv.
Israel has carried out airstrikes and seized more territory in Gaza despite an October ceasefire, whereas Hamas has refused to give up its weapons.
Kushner met with Hamas leaders in Cairo alongside the National Committee, the new technocratic Palestinian government slated to take over administration of Gaza.
He told Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst that the group reaffirmed its commitment to Trump's 20-point peace plan and to "the 15-point roadmap that we've been working on with them for the last four months, where they commit to giving up their weapons."
"Time will tell whether that's going to be implemented," Kushner said, adding that Washington believes it could be "very close to knowing, and we're making a lot of progress towards trying to get to the next steps."
"If they don't follow through now on their commitment, everyone will see that they're not genuine about peace, and then Israel will have a lot more support from the U.S. and others to go and finish the job in the appropriate way," Kushner said of Hamas.
It was Kushner's second known meeting with the group.
"They said all the right things, but obviously, it's very, very hard to trust, you know, a terrorist organization that committed these terrible atrocities," Kushner said, adding, "But we had a very cordial meeting, and they said all the right things, and so we're going to give them a chance to perform. It's going to have to be based on actions and steps, and I hope it will be true."
Kushner traveled to Cairo accompanied by Board of Peace High Representative Nikolay Mladenov and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, where they also met with Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish mediators, according to Axios.
"I think today we had a very, very good meeting," Kushner told Fox News.
"I think there were some valid concerns that they raised that we were able to address, and we were able to go through some of the misunderstandings and misinformation that's been out about it as well," he added.
"We will not allow Gaza to be rebuilt until demilitarization occurs," Kushner said, adding, "We're also not going to restrict Israel's right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats. And so we had to clarify what that means."
Kushner outlined a rough timeline for disarmament.
"We could be seeing progress in as little as 30 days," he said, noting, "hopefully, on starting to take some of the weapons out, and filling in some of the tunnels in the next 60 to 90 days."
He called the arrangement a "win-win" for Israel. He explained that if Hamas hands over its weapons and tunnels willingly within 60 to 90 days, "that obviously would be the elimination of a huge security threat for Israel, almost an unthinkable achievement."
The U.S. official told Axios that under the plan, Hamas would first hand over its weapons to the Palestinian technocratic government. This government would then transfer them to an International Stabilization Force (ISF) tasked with destroying them.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu had the heads of Israeli military intelligence and the Shin Bet brief Kushner's team on alleged Hamas violations.
While Kushner and Netanyahu were meeting, Trump told Fox News he wants Israel to stop its airstrikes in Gaza.
A Board of Peace official told Axios that Trump was referring to strikes not tied to imminent threats. How to define an "imminent threat" remains a key point of difference between the Board of Peace and the Israeli government that still needs to be resolved, according to the Board of Peace official.
A U.S. official told Axios that Kushner and Netanyahu agreed to form a "deconfliction" mechanism in Gaza to monitor violations and address Israeli concerns about emerging threats, with Egyptian mediators involved.
"If the Israelis see Hamas doing something that could be an emerging threat, they will report it to the deconfliction mechanism and it will bring it up with Hamas. This way Hamas will know we are watching them," the official said.
Netanyahu's office said in a statement on X that the prime minister and the Board of Peace had "deep and constructive discussions" and agreed to establish two working groups.
The first will focus on "disarmament and demilitarization of Gaza," which both Israel and the Board of Peace want "prompt and completed before any reconstruction happens in Gaza," the statement said.
The second will address "sanitation, clean water and other public health issues for the people of Gaza" that also affect Israel, according to the statement.
A Board of Peace official said: "It was agreed that there will be no IDF redeployment from Gaza until Hamas is fully disarmed and all of Gaza is demilitarized, every weapon, light and heavy, and every tunnel. Israel retains its full right of self-defense: if Hamas resorts to terror, violence, or attempts to rearm, Israel will retain the right to act accordingly."
The official said the Board of Peace had informed Netanyahu that Hamas "has committed to fully disarm and to cease immediately all military activity in Gaza, including rearmament and tunnel digging."
A U.S. official told Axios that Netanyahu committed to taking steps to improve Gaza's humanitarian situation, particularly regarding water and sanitation.
"The gaps with the Israelis are not that great. None of us is relying on trusting Hamas," the official said. "But we think we can start doing some tangible steps. There is a ton of fearmongering as part of the political atmosphere in Israel. But if we see weapons being handed over by Hamas, that would be the first sign it is real."
A Board of Peace official described the meeting as "lengthy, in depth, and very productive," according to Axios. "We agreed with [Netanyahu] on a path forward. The Israelis are going to give this a chance. Now it's up to Hamas to show if it truly intends to comply."
Kushner said Israel has "a strong desire to live in peace" after nearly three years of war. "They've been through three years of war. It's been very, very hard for the country, very hard for the people. I think there's a lot of emotion in Israel and in the region," he told Fox News.
"As I travel around the region, I do think people are tired of war. I think they're ready for something new. But it's just sometimes hard. You know, who's going to take the first step, and how do you build trust when there's so little trust that's now been eroded?" he added.
Kushner also voiced confidence in Trump's ability to broker a lasting deal.
"We see a lot of positive indications, and President Trump has pulled off miracles before in the Middle East," he said, noting, "He's very committed to continuing to do things that nobody thinks are possible."
In October 2023, the Israeli army began an offensive in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians and injured more than 174,000 others. Despite a ceasefire in place since October 2025 as part of the first phase of Trump's Gaza peace plan, Israel has continued to attack Gaza, killing at least 1,260 people and injuring more than 4,100 others since then, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.
The plan's second phase envisions transferring Gaza's governance to a Palestinian technocratic committee, deploying an international stabilization force, and placing weapons under international supervision, with Israel expected to carry out a phased withdrawal to allow reconstruction to begin.
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