Kushner warns Hamas after US receives intel on terror group’s plans to evade disarmament – report

President Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner reportedly warned top Hamas official that US will give Israel free rein in Gaza if the terror group tries to deceive the Board of Peace.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

US envoy Jared Kushner issued an unusually blunt warning to Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya during recent negotiations in Egypt after American officials received intelligence indicating that elements of the terrorist group could be planning to evade their commitments to disarm, according to a new report.

The intelligence reportedly raised concerns in Washington that Hamas could formally agree to the US-backed framework for Gaza while attempting to preserve weapons and military capabilities in practice, prompting Kushner to confront the group directly during negotiations attended by regional mediators.

According to two people who were present at the meeting, Kushner told the Hamas delegation: “The real test will be implementation. If you try to deceive us, the process will stop, and no one will stand in Israel’s way.”

The warning amounted to an explicit message that the Trump administration would not restrain Israel from renewing large-scale military operations in Gaza if Hamas were found to be using the diplomatic process as a means of preserving its armed forces.

Hamas representatives, for their part, reportedly assured Kushner and the mediators that the organization intended to fulfill all 20 points of President Donald Trump’s plan, including provisions requiring the demilitarization of Gaza and the dismantling of Hamas’s military capabilities.

The exchange adds new context to Kushner’s public comments following his meeting with al-Hayya, in which he acknowledged deep skepticism about whether Hamas would actually carry out what it had promised.

“They said all the right things,” Kushner said following the talks, while adding that it was “very, very hard to trust” an organization responsible for the October 7, 2023 massacre.

Kushner nevertheless said Washington was prepared to test Hamas’s stated willingness to disarm through concrete steps rather than declarations.

“If they don’t follow through now on their commitment, everyone will see that they’re not genuine about peace,” he said, adding that Israel would then receive substantially greater support from Washington and other governments to “finish the job.”

The warning follows months of negotiations over how to implement the next phase of Trump’s plan for Gaza, with the disarmament of Hamas remaining the central unresolved issue.

Hamas agreed in late July to a 15-point implementation roadmap negotiated by Trump’s Board of Peace and regional mediators.

The framework is intended to translate the broader 20-point Gaza plan into concrete steps, including Hamas relinquishing its weapons, dismantling military infrastructure and tunnels, surrendering governing authority and allowing a new Palestinian technocratic administration to take control of the Strip.

Under the proposal originally accepted by Hamas, the disarmament process would take place gradually.

Areas of Gaza would be demilitarized in stages, with Israeli forces conducting corresponding withdrawals after the removal of weapons and destruction of military infrastructure in each sector had been verified.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has objected to that sequencing, insisting that Israel will not withdraw its forces before Hamas has been completely disarmed.

“The IDF won’t redeploy and will continue to actively thwart any effort against our forces and against our people,” an Israeli official said following Netanyahu’s meeting with Kushner last week.

The dispute has led US officials to consider modifying the proposal so that Hamas would surrender its weapons throughout the Gaza Strip before Israel carried out a broader withdrawal.

Hamas has simultaneously insisted that Israel must demonstrate that it will fulfill its own obligations under the agreement.

During the meeting with Kushner in Egypt, the group reportedly said it would begin implementing the disarmament framework only if Netanyahu publicly committed Israel to the plan.

Kushner has attempted to bridge the two positions by persuading Israel to take limited steps that would test whether Hamas is genuinely prepared to begin surrendering its arsenal.

He said last week that the first tangible progress could come relatively quickly, potentially with Hamas beginning to hand over weapons within approximately 30 days and work beginning to eliminate tunnels over the following two to three months.

“We will not allow Gaza to be rebuilt until the demilitarization occurs,” Kushner said.

The administration has also made clear that the process would not block Israel’s ability to respond to immediate threats.

“We’re also not going to restrict Israel’s right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats,” Kushner said after meeting Netanyahu.

HamasHamas disarmamentJared KushnerKhalil Al-Hayya