Two joint working groups have been formed to advance the second phase of US President Donald Trump’s 15-point Gaza peace plan: one will oversee disarmament and demilitarisation, while the other will address sanitation, clean water and public health.
US envoy Jared Kushner said reconstruction will not be allowed until Gaza’s demilitarisation is complete. The arrangement has deepened disagreements over the sequence of disarmament, Israeli withdrawal and rebuilding.
What each group is expected to handle
The security group is tasked with collecting and permanently decommissioning all light and heavy weapons, as well as dismantling Gaza’s tunnel network. Kushner estimated that the initial removal of weapons and filling of tunnels could begin within 60 to 90 days.
Weapons surrendered by Palestinian factions would be transferred directly to the American-led International Stabilization Force rather than to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, the proposed Palestinian technocratic government. Their destruction would be overseen by US General Jasper Jeffers, according to Israeli media reports cited in the source material.
Related coverage: Jared Kushner heads to Israel and Egypt amid Gaza plan dispute.
The humanitarian group is intended to address sanitation, water and health needs amid warnings of possible disease outbreaks. Its mandate also includes examining how environmental and public-health problems affect Israel, but its composition, leadership and operating procedures have not been publicly detailed.
Why the groups have become a point of dispute
The panels were created after Kushner and Board of Peace officials met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Board of Peace head Nickolay Mladenov, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and US Ambassador Mike Huckabee attended; Israeli representatives included Shin Bet Director David Zini and military intelligence chief Shlomi Binder, according to Israeli media.
The groups are designed to bypass deadlock over Phase Two of the plan. Netanyahu has rejected the roadmap’s current form and wants Hamas disarmed before an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, while Hamas has previously insisted that withdrawal should take place in parallel with disarmament.
More context: Israeli minister urges killing 30 to 40 Palestinians nightly in Gaza.
Palestinian political analysts cited in the source material said direct US control of surrendered weapons could be viewed as disarmament under American military supervision rather than as part of a balanced Palestinian and international settlement. They also warned that treating sanitation as a separate technical issue could fragment a wider political crisis.
Reconstruction remains tied to demilitarisation
The United States and Israel have linked broader rehabilitation to completion of the security group’s mandate. Kushner said Gaza would not be rebuilt until demilitarisation occurs, while Netanyahu said Israeli targeted operations against Hamas would continue and that Israeli forces would not withdraw from the so-called Yellow Line before disarmament is completed.
That sequencing differs from the original roadmap described in the source material, which linked area-by-area disarmament with simultaneous Israeli withdrawal. Kushner also said Washington would not restrict Israel’s right to defend itself against imminent threats.
Also read: Gaza ceasefire remains stalled after Netanyahu-Kushner meeting.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Majed Al-Ansari, criticised what he called Israel’s delay in implementing the ceasefire agreement and warned that rejection of the roadmap risked regional stability. Analysts also said the panels’ creation appeared to sideline mediators including Qatar, Türkiye and Egypt.
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