WASHINGTON — The United States said it is launching the second phase of its plan to end the Gaza war, moving ahead even as key elements of the first phase — including a complete cease-fire between Israel and Hamas — remain unfulfilled. The faltering start has been marked by ongoing Israeli airstrikes that have killed hundreds in Gaza, delays in reopening the Gaza-Egypt border crossing and the failure to return the remains of one last Israeli hostage.
Announcing the shift in a social media post, President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said phase two “establishes a transitional technocratic Palestinian administration in Gaza” and begins the process of disarmament and reconstruction. U.S. officials and mediator partners will also face the more complex tasks of disarming Hamas, which has refused to surrender its weapons, and deploying an international peacekeeping force envisioned in the plan.
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Israel and Hamas signed off in October on Trump’s proposal, which places Gaza under a transitional international “Board of Peace.” The board is expected to be represented on the ground by Nickolay Mladenov, the former U.N. Middle East envoy. People from the private sector and non-governmental organizations have been tapped for roles, according to a list seen by Reuters, though Witkoff did not say how many members the body would include or name them. A European diplomat said another announcement related to the board is expected at Davos next week.
Immediate relief is slated to be the committee’s first priority, including housing for displaced Palestinians living in makeshift tent camps amid rubble. In a radio interview, Mr. Shaath said the group would focus on clearing debris and rebuilding. He floated an unconventional approach — using bulldozers to push rubble into the sea to create new land — and claimed the effort “won’t take more than three years.” A 2024 U.N. report estimates that rebuilding Gaza’s shattered homes will take at least until 2040 and could stretch for many decades.
Witkoff said phase two would begin “the full demilitarisation and reconstruction of Gaza, primarily the disarmament of all unauthorized personnel.” Hamas agreed in October to hand governance to the technocratic committee but continues to reject disarmament. How the group would be disarmed remains unclear as Hamas has regrouped during a fragile cease-fire and insists it will give up its weapons only once there is a Palestinian state. Egyptian sources said talks in Cairo with Hamas will now focus on disarmament. Further Israeli troop withdrawals inside Gaza are tied to that step, according to the plan.
In the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority welcomed the U.S. move to press ahead. In a statement posted on X, Palestinian Vice President Hussein Al-Sheikh voiced support for the technocratic committee and said Gaza’s institutions should be linked to those run by the Palestinian Authority, “upholding the principle of one system, one law and one legitimate weapon.” Hamas leaders and other Palestinian factions are in Cairo for talks on the second phase, the group said, where committee members are expected to meet with Mladenov.
Egyptian and Palestinian sources said Hamas and its rival Fatah, led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, have endorsed the list of technocratic committee members. The lineup is expected to include Ayed Abu Ramadan, head of the Gaza Chamber of Commerce, and Omar Shamali, who has worked for the Palestine Telecommunications Company, Paltel. It also includes Sami Nasman, a retired senior Palestinian Authority security officer and longtime Hamas critic who is originally from Gaza and has lived in the West Bank since 2007.
Israeli officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The plan’s second phase proceeds as the first remains incomplete, with cease-fire violations, humanitarian strain and unresolved border access underscoring the fragile foundation on which the next steps now rest.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
