PM, Kushner clashed over continued Israeli strikes on Oct. 7 terrorists — officials
Officials tell ToI that Trump aide also took issue with Netanyahu’s refusal to let police recruits leave Gaza for training, as Board of Peace needs them for Hamas weapons handovers
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
The main dispute during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting on Monday with US special envoy Jared Kushner was over the premier’s insistence that Israel continue carrying out strikes on Hamas operatives in Gaza who allegedly took part in the terror group’s October 7 onslaught, an official present at the sit-down told The Times of Israel.
Earlier this month, Israel acknowledged having established a special operation to hunt down and kill every Palestinian terrorist involved in the October 7, 2023, invasion and atrocities.
The mission has resulted in countless apparent violations of the ceasefire that Israel and Hamas inked in October 2025, but the US-controlled Board of Peace has not adamantly objected, as the Israel Defense Forces in most cases has claimed those targeted posed an imminent threat to troops.
For months, the Board of Peace prioritized coaxing Hamas to accept its disarmament proposal, which the terror group finally did on July 30.
Once in place, the plan envisions both sides immediately halting all military operations, though Netanyahu has come out against the proposal and raised the issue during his meeting with Kushner, according to the official present.
While Kushner, US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior aide, assured Netanyahu that he would not oppose Israeli strikes against those who genuinely pose an “imminent threat,” he also told the premier that this exception should not be widely interpreted, the official said.
To the frustration of the Board of Peace delegation, Netanyahu insisted that strikes against participants in the October 7 attack would continue, according to the official, who added that no agreement was reached on the matter.
A second source briefed on the meeting confirmed the official’s account.
Hours after Kushner left Israel, the IDF carried out one of its deadliest strikes in months, targeting what it said was a gathering of senior Hamas operatives. Reports said at least six people were killed in the strike, including a child, and over 10 wounded, among them an elderly woman.
Even while theoretically understanding Israel’s desire to pursue October 7 terrorists, the continued harm to civilians in those strikes has been an increasing cause of concern for the Board of Peace, the official said.
In addition to violating the Board of Peace’s stalled disarmament plan, the policy laid out by Netanyahu could well go against Trump’s 20-point plan for ending the Gaza war, which the premier accepted in September of last year.
That proposal stated that Hamas members who “commit to peaceful co-existence and to decommission their weapons will be given amnesty.”
The official present at the Monday meeting said Kushner also took issue with Netanyahu’s refusal to allow recruits for the new Palestinian police force to leave the Strip for training in Egypt.
The Board of Peace disarmament plan envisions Hamas handing over its weapons to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza’s new police force, in a process facilitated by the International Stabilization Force.
Kushner said Monday that he wants Hamas to begin handing over its weapons within a month, but without a sufficient number of already trained police recruits, there may not be anyone for Hamas to give its weapons to.
The Times of Israel Community.