By Brendan Scanland
WASHINGTON, D.C. — At the White House Monday, President Donald Trump sat down with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss a new, comprehensive Gaza peace proposal being pushed by the administration.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is facing mounting isolation, now nearly two years into Israel’s war with Hamas, and is turning once again to the U.S. This is the Prime Minister’s fourth trip to Washington since Trump returned to office in January.
According to the White House, the 20-point plan calls for Gaza to be a “deradicalized terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbors.”
“The plan that we put forward today is focused on ending the war immediately, getting all of our hostages back, getting everything back,” said President Trump. “And creating conditions for durable Israeli security and Palestinian success.”
The proposal, which has been agreed to by Israel, promises an immediate end to fighting and massive redevelopment with international aid. In the proposal’s early stages, Israeli forces would pull back, hostages would be returned within 72 hours, and in exchange, Israel would release thousands of Palestinian prisoners, including women and children.
Hamas fighters who commit to peaceful coexistence and decommission their weapons would be granted amnesty. Members of Hamas who wish to leave Gaza would be provided safe passage to receiving countries.
Gaza would be governed by a temporary, non-political Palestinian committee overseen by an international “Board of Peace” led by President Trump and joined by other leaders. A U.S.-backed stabilization force would secure borders, prevent weapons smuggling and train Palestinian police. Hamas and other militant groups would be barred from politics, all tunnels and weapons factories destroyed, and an internationally funded buyback program would remove arms.
The plan also outlines a special economic zone to lure investment and jobs and calls for interfaith dialogue to promote coexistence.
Long-term, it suggests a path toward Palestinian self-determination — but only once reforms are in place, while also guaranteeing Israel’s security and protecting the Abraham Accords.
“I challenge the Palestinians to take responsibility for their destiny because that’s what we’re giving them, we’re giving them responsibility for their destiny — fully condemn and prohibit terrorism and earn their way to a brighter future. They don’t want the life that they’ve had. They’ve had a rough life with Hamas,” said Trump. “If the Palestinian Authority does not complete the reforms that I laid out in my vision for peace in 2020, they’ll have only themselves to blame. We are giving them an amazing footprint, and they have amazing support from the leaders of the Arab world and the Muslim world.”
So far, only one party is on board with the proposal. If Hamas does not agree, President Trump said Israel will have the full backing of the United States.
“I hope that we’re going to have a deal for peace. If Hamas rejects the deal, which is always possible, they’re the only one left, everyone else has accepted it,” said Trump. “But if not, as you know, Bibi, you’d have our full backing to do what you would have to do.”
“But if Hamas rejects your plan, Mr. President, or if they supposedly accept it and then basically do everything to counteract that, Israel will finish the job by itself. This can be done the easy way or it can be done the hard way, but it will be done. We prefer the easy way, but it has to be done,” said Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Monday’s meeting comes as global momentum grows for Palestinian statehood, with more than 150 countries — including the U.K., France and Canada — now on board. At the U.N. last week, Netanyahu denounced the move as “disgraceful.”
Despite support from the U.S. and Israel, it is still unknown how Hamas feels about the proposal and how much time it has to respond.
The sit-down with Netanyahu was just one high-stakes meeting at the White House on a busy Monday. President Trump also met with congressional leaders, including Democrats, just ahead of the government shutdown deadline at midnight Tuesday. But with Democrats insisting on health care protections and Republicans pushing a clean short-term funding bill, the talks appear unlikely to break the deadlock.
