Marathon U.S.-Israel meeting brings cautious optimism but no firm commitment to U.S. Gaza plan
- A long meeting between Jared Kushner and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu left the Gaza ceasefire plan without a clear Israeli commitment.
- Officials described the talks as moderately optimistic, but Israel did not publicly agree to the latest U.S.-backed proposal.
- U.S. negotiators appeared to accept Israel's position that Hamas must disarm before reconstruction of Gaza begins.
- There was no public signal that Israel would withdraw from the roughly 60% of Gaza it currently occupies, a major point in the plan.
- The meeting followed Netanyahu's rejection of the 15-point roadmap, and Kushner had met Hamas' leader in Egypt the day before.
A marathon meeting in Jerusalem between U.S. negotiator Jared Kushner and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ended with cautious optimism but no firm Israeli commitment to the latest U.S.-backed plan for Gaza. Hamas has already accepted the proposal, according to the report.
The main unresolved issues include whether Israel will agree to withdraw from the parts of Gaza its troops still occupy and how the plan would handle Hamas disarmament. U.S. negotiators appeared to accept Israel's view that reconstruction should not begin until Hamas disarms, but they did not publicly say Israel had agreed to a withdrawal.
The talks came after Netanyahu rejected the 15-point roadmap to advance the ceasefire, saying there would be no withdrawal without disarmament. Kushner had met with Hamas leader the previous day in Egypt. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Nickolay Mladenov, director of the U.S.-created Board of Peace, also attended the meeting with Netanyahu.
美以马拉松式会谈带来谨慎乐观 但未就美国加沙方案作出明确承诺
美国谈判代表贾里德·库什纳与以色列总理内塔尼亚胡在耶路撒冷举行了长时间会谈，结果是态度上较为乐观，但以方并未就最新的美国支持方案作出明确承诺。报道说，哈马斯已经接受了这项提案。
尚未解决的核心问题包括以色列是否同意从其部队仍控制的加沙部分地区撤出，以及如何处理哈马斯解除武装的问题。报道指出，美方谈判人员似乎接受了以方的立场，即在哈马斯解除武装之前不应开始重建，但并未公开表示以色列已同意撤军。
这次会谈发生在内塔尼亚胡拒绝推进停火的15点路线图之后，他当时表示，在解除武装前不会撤军。库什纳前一天还在埃及会见了哈马斯领导人。前英国首相托尼·布莱尔以及美国设立的“和平委员会”主任尼古拉·姆拉德诺夫也参加了与内塔尼亚胡的会面。