Jared Kushner, senior envoy and son-in-law to U.S. President Donald Trump, held a rare face-to-face meeting with Hamas’s political chief in Egypt on Sunday, opening a fresh diplomatic push to revive a stalled ceasefire in Gaza.
The talks in Cairo brought together Kushner and mediators from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, with Hamas officials present at some of the sessions. The effort seeks to salvage a US-backed, 15-point road map under which Hamas would disarm and Israeli forces would withdraw from the war-battered Palestinian territory.
Kushner is scheduled to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday. Netanyahu faces mounting pressure after rejecting the latest version of the plan, and the meeting is expected to test whether the two sides can bridge deep disagreements over disarmament and withdrawal.
The negotiations unfolded against the backdrop of continued Israeli strikes on Gaza, underscoring the fragility of the diplomatic track even as mediators worked to keep it alive.
Direct contact between a senior U.S. envoy and Hamas leadership remains unusual, given Washington’s long-standing designation of the group. The willingness to hold such a meeting reflects the Trump administration’s determination to secure a breakthrough after months of collapsed negotiations.
The road map is the latest in a series of American proposals for the enclave. Earlier this year, the administration outlined an ambitious postwar reconstruction vision for Gaza that drew both interest and criticism across the region.
Gaza and broader regional security have repeatedly featured in exchanges between Netanyahu and Trump, including earlier discussions where the Israeli leader pressed the U.S. president on Iran and Gaza.
Egypt, Qatar and Turkey have served as key intermediaries throughout the conflict, relaying messages between Israel and Hamas and hosting rounds of indirect talks. Their continued involvement signals that regional powers remain central to any durable settlement.
The coming days are likely to prove decisive. Should Kushner’s meetings in Cairo and Jerusalem yield movement, mediators could reconvene to work through the plan’s remaining sticking points, though the persistence of military operations leaves the outcome uncertain.