US envoy Kushner meets Netanyahu after visiting Hamas leader

Netanyahu, whose ruling coalition is trailing in Israeli opinion polls ahead of an October national election, publicly rejected this month a US-backed agreement that would see Hamas surrender its arms in exchange for Israel withdrawing from Gaza.

Trump had said the agreement would be carried out in phases, with Israeli forces withdrawing from Gaza as disarmament proceeded and an “International Stabilisation Force” worked with a new Palestinian police force to secure the territory.

But Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving leader, has said the country’s military will only withdraw ⁠once Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza have been completely disarmed.

Diplomats say Israel is unlikely to make any major concessions ‌over Gaza ahead of the October 27 election.

Kushner was joined in the Jerusalem meeting with Netanyahu by Nickolay Mladenov, Trump’s Board of Peace envoy for Gaza, ‌the two sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly. Netanyahu’s ⁠office did not immediately ⁠respond to a request for comment.

Mladenov, a former UN official with close ties to the United Arab Emirates, an influential Middle Eastern state, helped broker last month’s disarmament ‌agreement and is widely seen as leading efforts to implement Trump’s original 20-point plan to end the war, which Israel and Hamas agreed to last year.