The US Says Gaza Won't Be Rebuilt Until Hamas Gives Up Its Weapons
US envoy Jared Kushner said the Trump administration will not allow reconstruction in the Gaza Strip until Hamas gives up its weapons. "We have a plan to rebuild Gaza, but we will not allow Gaza to be rebuilt until the demilitarisation occurs," Kushner told Fox News in an interview Al Jazeera.
Demilitarisation means removing all weapons and military equipment from a group or area. In this case, it refers to Hamas handing over its guns, tunnels, and other military tools.
Kushner made these remarks on August 17, 2026, after a weekend of talks that did not produce results. He held a rare meeting with Hamas officials in Egypt on Sunday, calling the talks "very cordial" while saying Washington would judge Hamas based on its actions Al Jazeera. He then met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, but that meeting did not lead to a breakthrough on a Gaza plan that Hamas had already agreed to.
The plan at the centre of these discussions calls on Hamas to lay down its arms as Israel withdraws from the territory Reuters. Hamas had agreed to disarm as part of a US-backed process that would include Israeli withdrawal and an end to attacks on the Palestinian territory. Israel, however, rejected the proposal earlier in August 2026, saying it would not make any concessions until Gaza is fully demilitarised Al Jazeera. Israel has also expressed serious concerns, saying that pulling back before Hamas is truly disarmed would allow the group to quickly re-expand and rebuild NPR.
Kushner has projected optimism. He said Hamas could be "very close" to laying down its weapons and suggested progress could come within as little as 30 days Euronews. He called the deal a win-win for Israel, saying that Hamas handing over its weapons and tunnels over a 60-to-90-day period would remove a major security threat. At the same time, he signalled continued US support for Israeli military action: "We're also not going to restrict Israel's right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats" Al Jazeera.
President Trump himself appeared to take a harder line on Israeli strikes. Earlier on Monday, he called for an end to the Israeli bombardment, saying: "Israelis should not be striking in Gaza. Hamas agreed to lay down their weapons" Al Jazeera. That statement conflicts with Kushner's pledge not to constrain Israel's right to self-defence, leaving it unclear what the administration's actual position is on continued military operations.
A ceasefire is a formal agreement to stop fighting. Israel has been launching near-daily attacks on Gaza, killing at least 1,265 people there since a ceasefire came into effect last year. According to the reporting, Israel's war on Gaza has killed 73,399 Palestinians since October 2023 Al Jazeera. The scale of destruction has made reconstruction a defining question of any post-conflict arrangement, and Kushner has previously acknowledged that his reconstruction plan would only work if the territory has "security" AP News.
The broader context here is a US-Israel relationship that has supplied Israel with approximately $25 billion in military aid over the past three years. During that period, Washington has defended the Netanyahu government at international forums, including by imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court officials investigating atrocities in Gaza. Sanctions are punishments, usually financial, meant to pressure people or organisations by cutting off their access to money or travel Al Jazeera.
Several tensions are visible within the administration's own approach. Trump is pressing Israel to stop striking Gaza even as his envoy declines to constrain Israeli self-defence. The US is conditioning reconstruction on Hamas disarmament while also acknowledging, through Kushner's own earlier statements, that the security conditions required for rebuilding remain uncertain. And although Kushner frames disarmament as achievable within 30 to 90 days, Israel's position that it will not withdraw or make concessions before full demilitarisation creates a sequencing problem. The plan envisions both sides acting at the same time, but Israel is demanding that Hamas disarm first.
There is also the question of whether disarmament would actually lead to peace. Reuters reported in February 2026, citing sources, that Hamas's disarmament could lead Israel to resume full-scale war rather than transition to reconstruction Reuters. That assessment, while months old, raises a concern that has not been publicly resolved: the possibility that Hamas surrendering its weapons could remove the last constraint on an Israeli leadership that has resisted the withdrawal plan the US is pushing.
Kushner's meeting with Hamas officials in Egypt was itself notable. Direct US-Hamas engagement is rare, and the fact that it happened while Israel rejected the very plan the US is promoting adds to the diplomatic complexity. Kushner described the talks as cordial but was clear that Washington would judge based on Hamas's actions, not its words. With Hamas having already agreed to the plan and Israel having rejected it, the impasse now rests on whether the US can bridge the gap between Israel's demand that Hamas fully disarm first and the plan's call for a coordinated, step-by-step process.
