On July 30, 2026, US President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the Board of Peace — an international group he created — has reached an agreement for the "complete disarmament" of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza. That means Hamas would give up its weapons. Trump said it is "a critical step towards Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government" and part of his 20-Point Plan, carried out in "carefully structured phases" (BBC; Reuters).

Here's the catch: as of the BBC's reporting, it was unclear whether Hamas and Israel had actually agreed to the deal. Neither had said anything publicly. The Council on Foreign Relations, a US-based research group, has previously noted that both parties' willingness to go along with the Board of Peace's plans has been questioned at various points (CFR).

Trump's post said Israeli forces will withdraw from Gaza "as disarmament is completed." He also said an "International Stabilization Force" — a group of troops or police from multiple countries — will work with "a new Palestinian police force" to handle security in Gaza (BBC).

This fits into the second phase of a US-brokered ceasefire plan for Gaza, which pairs disarming Hamas with rebuilding the territory. Trump's 20-Point Plan names the Board of Peace as the main international authority in charge of making the peace plan happen (BBC; Reuters).

How Did the Board of Peace Get Here?

The Board of Peace came together fast. Trump said on Truth Social that he released a plan to permanently end the Gaza conflict "last October" (Truth Social). The White House formally established the Board in a January 2026 ceremony (White House).

On January 22, 2026, it was given special legal status as a public international organization, which comes with privileges and immunities — legal protections usually reserved for big, established groups like the United Nations. This was published in the Federal Register, the official journal of the US government (Federal Register).

The Board's charter — its founding document — was published by the State Department in April 2026. It describes the Board as "an international organization that seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance, and secure enduring peace" (State Department).

At the Board's first meeting on February 19, 2026, Trump announced $7 billion for Gaza from US allies and $10 billion from the United States (Reuters). Ambassador Mike Waltz also spoke at the event, according to the US Mission to the United Nations (USUN). In June 2026, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said more than $17 billion has been pledged for Gaza reconstruction through the Board of Peace. She pressed the State Department on how that money would be overseen and whether US taxpayer funds were being handled properly (Senate Foreign Relations Committee).

Pushback and Complications

Getting Hamas to disarm has not been easy. In April 2025, a senior Palestinian official told the BBC that Hamas rejected a disarmament plan proposed by someone close to Trump's peace efforts (BBC). In March 2026, the Board of Peace gave Hamas a written proposal on how it could lay down its weapons, according to two sources (Reuters). The Board has also been planning a pilot humanitarian zone — a safe area for civilians — to try to get peace efforts moving again (Reuters).

On July 26, 2026, Israel's security cabinet approved allowing an international force to enter parts of Gaza (Reuters). That lines up with Trump's plan for an International Stabilization Force. Trump has also posted that "The Board of Peace has unlimited potential" (Truth Social) and separately told Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney that the Board was pulling its invitation to Canada (Truth Social).

Notably, the Board of Peace was first thought of as a way to end the Israel-Hamas war and rebuild Gaza. But its charter does not actually mention Gaza by name, and it seems designed to take on roles usually played by the United Nations (BBC).

What to Make of All This

The broader context here is one of uncertainty stacked on uncertainty. The July 30 announcement describes an agreement whose participants are unconfirmed. The plan depends on cooperation from Hamas and Israel — two parties whose involvement has been questioned at every step. Hamas already rejected a disarmament proposal in April 2025. Israel's cabinet approved letting an international force enter Gaza just days before the announcement, but there is a big difference between a cabinet vote and actually putting troops on the ground.

The $17 billion in reconstruction funding is also still just a pledge, not money that has been spent. Senator Shaheen's push for oversight shows that Congress is watching closely how those funds move through the Board of Peace.

The Board of Peace's design raises questions of its own. Its charter doesn't mention Gaza specifically, and its language about restoring "dependable and lawful governance" suggests it may have ambitions beyond this one conflict. The special legal protections it received from the US government, combined with Trump pulling Canada's invitation, signal that the Board's membership and purpose are still shifting. Whether it ends up as a Gaza-focused rebuilding effort or a broader tool of US foreign policy will depend on which countries formally join and what actually gets built on the ground.