Board of Peace parts ways with deradicalization director after 3 months, official tells ToI

The Board of Peace has parted ways with its director of deradicalization after roughly three months, an official from the US-led body overseeing the postwar management of Gaza told The Times of Israel on Tuesday.

“Jason Olson’s recent detail in support of the Board of Peace mission has concluded. We thank him for his capacity-building contributions,” the official said in a statement.

Olson joined the Board of Peace from the Department of Defense, with the creation of the position offering a sign of the panel’s priorities as it works to rebuild Gaza.

Israeli officials have repeatedly insisted that true peace in Gaza requires the “deradicalization” of Gaza’s population following the Hamas-led October 7 onslaught.

Olson appeared at a conference in Jerusalem last week, during which he touted the importance of the US-Israel relationship and stressed the need for Hamas to disarm in order to make way for Gaza to be rebuilt.

No reason was given for Olson’s departure, and he did not respond to a request for comment.

The personnel change came as much of the the Board of Peace’s professional staff were meeting in Cyprus in order to ready a committee of Palestinian technocrats for entering Gaza in place of Hamas.

That handover has been held up, with the Board of Peace faulting Hamas for refusing to hand over its weapons, while the terror group argues that Israel must first adhere to the terms of a ceasefire inked last year.