Overview
- Jared Kushner said Sunday the Trump administration leveraged the diplomatic fallout from Israel’s Sept. 9, 2025 strike in Doha to push Jerusalem to accept the Oct. 9, 2025 ceasefire that returned 48 hostages.
- Netanyahu’s Likud issued an immediate rebuttal saying Israel’s military pressure, including the Gaza City operation and the Doha strike, combined with President Trump’s pressure, forced Hamas to agree to the deal.
- Kushner acknowledged Israeli unease at the time but said officials later embraced the agreement and argued it benefited both Israel and civilians in Gaza.
- The administration is pressing a phased Gaza roadmap that links Hamas disarmament to Israeli withdrawal, the creation of a new Gaza governing committee, and reconstruction, and U.S. envoys met Hamas figures including Khalil al-Hayya with Mohammed Dahlan present.
- The public dispute raises two main risks: it could deepen U.S.-Israeli coordination problems during Israel’s election campaign and it leaves key questions about verification of disarmament and the timing of reconstruction unresolved.