US Warns Israel: Trump Will Be 'Very Disappointed' if Gaza Reconstruction Plan is Obstructed
The United States government has warned Israel not to obstruct the implementation of the 20-point Gaza reconstruction plan initiated by President Donald Trump. The White House asserted that Trump would be “very disappointed” if Israel reneged on previously agreed commitments.
This warning was delivered by a senior US official during a briefing to journalists, shortly after Trump announced on Thursday (30/7) that Hamas had accepted a disarmament proposal submitted by the Board of Peace, a US-established body designed to oversee Gaza’s governance during the transition period.
The statement follows a cold response from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the progress of negotiations between Hamas and the Board of Peace in Egypt. The Israeli government stated that the disarmament proposal does not yet meet Tel Aviv’s demands for the full demilitarisation of Gaza as a prerequisite for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory.
Responding to this stance, the senior US official emphasised that Washington is only asking Israel to execute the agreement that was previously approved. “We are not asking Israel to do anything beyond the 20-point plan they previously agreed to. Therefore, we are very confident they will comply. If not, President Trump will be very, very disappointed.”
The official also stressed that the primary objective of the agreement is to end the war and ensure all hostages are returned. “We are only asking them to stick to the initial agreement that successfully returned hostages and ended the war. Gaza has been their greatest thorn for years. Given the various issues they currently face, this is not an issue they wish to escalate further.”
He added that the US government remains confident that Israel will continue to be a partner in implementing the agreement. According to the official, Israel previously doubted that Hamas would fulfil its commitments. However, Hamas is deemed to have fulfilled part of its obligations by returning agreed-upon hostages and remains.
“Israel did not believe we could reach an agreement to release the hostages. They also did not believe we could return the remains. They were very sceptical that Hamas would disarm. However, Hamas did make an agreement and kept it by returning the remains and the hostages. Therefore, our intention is also to ensure Israel fulfils its commitments so that we can serve as a fair mediator.”
The US official also criticised Israel’s objections to the involvement of Qatar and Turkey in the Board of Peace, noting that both nations, along with Egypt, play a vital role in maintaining the ceasefire in Gaza.
Meanwhile, an official from the Board of Peace stated that Hamas’s approval opens a 14-day negotiation period to agree on the implementation schedule for each stage of disarmament. The process is expected to take between 200 to 350 days before the entire framework of the agreement is fully implemented.
Hamas and Palestinian factions have agreed to begin the inventory and handover of heavy weaponry in Gaza as part of the full disarmament agreement. Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad emphasised that disarmament is contingent upon the withdrawal of Israeli forces and the reconstruction of Gaza as per the agreement.