Trump could unveil Gaza ‘peace council’, ‘government’ soon: Israeli media

The White House wants to move beyond phase one of the Gaza ceasefire process in January, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed back, creating friction with United States President Donald Trump’s senior team, according to Israeli media reports.

Israel’s Channel 12 quoted senior White House officials as saying the US hopes to announce the establishment of a Palestinian technocratic government to run day-to-day affairs in Gaza in early January, a key provision of phase two of the plan to end the genocidal war.

The White House also plans to unveil a multinational peace council to oversee the technocratic government’s work and an international stabilisation force to handle security in Gaza next month, Channel 12 reported.

Trump could announce the peace council, which he has suggested he would head, as early as in the Davos Economic Forum on January 19, it added.

Meanwhile, the US envisions the start of staged disarmament of Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, to be managed by the newly established technocratic government, according to a senior White House official quoted by Channel 12.

Hamas’s demilitarisation, part of the ceasefire framework adopted by the United Nations Security Council in November, has remained a key sticking point that the Palestinian group has not fully committed to. Earlier this month, senior Hamas figure Khaled Meshaal said the group would be open to a temporary “freeze” on its weapons but not full disarmament.

Israeli government ‘making it harder’

Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff recently briefed Israeli officials on US plans to advance the ceasefire process, including the establishment of the new peace council, Israel’s Channel 13 quoted a senior Israeli official as saying.

But Netanyahu, who expected to meet Trump on Monday, has resisted the plans, expressing particular scepticism about the proposal for Hamas’s disarmament, a separate informed source told Israel’s Channel 12.

The report follows repeated Israeli violations of the October ceasefire that have thrown its future into jeopardy.

During the 11-week truce, Israel has continued to attack Gaza on a near-daily basis, killing at least 406 Palestinians, including many civilians, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

Israel has also blocked the full delivery of aid promised by the ceasefire, continuing to restrict essential and nutritious food items like meat, dairy, and vegetables.

On Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israeli forces “will never leave Gaza”, despite the ceasefire plan calling for Israel’s future full withdrawal.

The US has grown frustrated by what it perceives as Israel’s disregard for the truce and “delay” tactics that hamper Washington’s plans to advance the peace process, Israel’s Channel 12 reported.

“It’s felt for some time as if the Israelis are having second thoughts about the Gaza agreement,” an unnamed US official told the media. “Implementation is already difficult, but sometimes the Israelis make it even harder.”

Daniel Levy, a former Israeli government adviser who heads the US/Middle East Project, told media that Israel is unlikely to follow through with major ceasefire provisions, such as its full withdrawal and the establishment of a technocratic Palestinian government in Gaza, without immense external pressure.

“Israel has no intention of withdrawing from the rest of Gaza. It has no intention of allowing an international force that could in any way limit its freedom of manoeuvre to kill Palestinians,” Levy said. “It has no intention of there being Palestinian legitimate governance inside Gaza. And unless it is pushed and it is forced to accept those things, it will hold out.”