President Donald Trump is preparing to announce a new governing body aimed at reshaping Gaza as negotiations with Hamas remain fragile and violence continues.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
President Donald Trump is expected this week to finalize appointments to a newly formed Gaza Board of Peace, an entity designed to advance his administration’s long-term plan for the war-torn enclave, according to a report by Bloomberg.
Only one appointment has been publicly confirmed so far: Nickolay Mladenov, a Bulgarian politician and former United Nations envoy to the Middle East, who will serve as the board’s director-general.
The board, which Trump is expected to chair and which will largely consist of sitting heads of government, is tasked with implementing the president’s 20-point plan for Gaza. The framework calls for the removal of Hamas from power, the establishment of an interim governing authority, the deployment of foreign security forces, and the mobilization of international reconstruction funding.
Bishara Bahbah, a Palestinian American intermediary who has engaged with Hamas on Trump’s behalf, said Saturday that the full board is expected to be announced in the coming week. He said its first meeting is planned to take place on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos later this month.
Trump first unveiled the 20-point Gaza proposal last September, branding it “New Gaza” and describing it as a comprehensive effort to go beyond ending active hostilities. The plan aims to rebuild Gaza’s infrastructure, raise civilian living standards, and prevent the territory from again serving as a launch point for attacks against Israel.
Progress on the initiative has been limited. Hamas has agreed only to the first phase of the plan, which focuses on a ceasefire and expanded humanitarian access. Even that phase remains unstable, with negotiations continuing over the recovery of the remains of the final Israeli hostage believed to be held in Gaza.
Israeli military operations have continued amid the fragile truce. Israel’s armed forces said Friday that they struck Hamas positions in both northern and southern Gaza after militants launched a failed projectile from the Gaza City area. In recent days, three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Palestinian ambushes.
“Hamas can’t continue to postpone disarming,” U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said in an interview with Israel’s Kan TV. “They’re not going to have a future there.”
Under Trump’s plan, Palestinian factions are expected to convene in Cairo next week to nominate technocrats for a new interim Gaza government. Unnamed countries would later contribute troops to an International Stabilization Force responsible for maintaining security during the transition.
If Hamas agrees to disarm, the foreign contingent would oversee the collection of its weapons. However, negotiators cited by Bloomberg expressed skepticism that the force would be willing or able to compel Hamas to surrender arms if the group resisted.
Israeli officials have signaled patience may be limited. Eli Cohen, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet, said Israel should allow the international force only a short grace period.
“A few months,” Cohen said, before Israel considers resuming a full-scale military campaign involving tanks and ground forces if Hamas remains armed.
The expected announcement of the Gaza Board of Peace comes as the Trump administration seeks to convert a tenuous ceasefire into a broader political and security transformation for the enclave, even as uncertainty persists over Hamas’s willingness to relinquish control.
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