Billions pledged, but Hamas' grip clouds Trump’s Gaza plan
The Board of Peace is touting new aid and military commitments, but will they make a difference if Hamas still holds the guns in Gaza?
You're reading an excerpt from Al-Monitor Washington, where we break down the latest in US-Middle East diplomacy. To read the full newsletter, sign up here.
WASHINGTON — At the inaugural meeting of his Board of Peace, President Donald Trump announced sweeping pledges of troops and billions in reconstruction aid. But those commitments will mean little if the Trump-led board can’t first persuade Hamas to lay down its arms.
“I think what was sort of reinforced and on display today was there is a vision there, but still no answers on how to go about the issues that are being presented as prerequisites to moving forward,” said Lucy Kurtzer-Ellenbogen, a senior fellow with the Middle East Institute who is focused on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Washington summit, which was held at the recently renamed Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, brought together officials from dozens of countries. It came as major questions hang over the current phase of Gaza’s ceasefire, which calls for the disarmament of Hamas, the full withdrawal of Israeli troops and the deployment of an International Stabilization Force (ISF) to enforce the shaky truce.
