The agreement will be carried out in phases and the president said Gaza will eventually be run by a new Palestinian government.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on July 30 that the Board of Peace reached an agreement for the complete disarmament of the Hamas terrorist group and all other armed groups in Gaza.
“The Board of Peace reached a HISTORIC agreement for the COMPLETE DISARMAMENT of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza. This is a monumental step toward lasting PEACE and SECURITY,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
The president said that “Israel will have the security it deserves, with Gaza no longer used as a base for terror attacks.”
The agreement will be carried out in a series of phases.
Phases include making all military operations in Gaza stop, which will be followed by decommissioning heavy weapons, tunnels, and production sites in the Gaza Strip.
“As disarmament is completed, Israeli forces will withdraw, and the International Stabilization Force will work with a new Palestinian police force to take responsibility for Gaza being safe for its residents and its neighbors,” the president said.
Trump acknowledged that there was still “much work to do” as he thanked the mediators in Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey who made the agreement possible.
The president also said Gaza will eventually be run by a new government.
“This agreement is a critical step towards Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government that will work closely with the Board of Peace to help the Palestinian people,” Trump wrote.
He added, “Gaza will finally be in the hands of a new Palestinian government that serves its PEOPLE. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL ON THIS AMAZING DEVELOPMENT, THAT EVERYBODY SAID COULD NEVER BE ACHIEVED!”
U.S. and Board of Peace officials said the government will be technocratic and apolitical.
The Palestinian police force has already begun training to take over from Hamas.
“For the first time, effectively, Hamas and the Palestinians have agreed to accept this entire framework and have agreed on a way to implement it,” a U.S. official said in a July 30 press call.
Officials said that the goal is to make Gaza a free market economy, which will “create a lot of jobs” so it’s not dependent on aid.
“In the short term there’ll be, you know, big aid needed for the rebuilding and to deal with some humanitarian issues,” a U.S. official said.
U.S. officials say they’ve sorted through 28 different plans to develop and rebuild Gaza.
“There are some elements of them that are good, and some elements that are not practical,” a U.S. official said. “However, we’ve looked at all of these plans, and we believe that it is in the hands of the Board of Peace and the National Committee to be able to come up with a plan for the reconstruction of Gaza not just to rebuild what was destroyed on the Gaza Strip, but to build for a future of prosperity, security, and peace for the Palestinians inside the Gaza Strip.”
The transition process could take up to a year, but U.S. officials say the timeline may change depending on how quickly or slowly the phases are completed.
“This is a totally impossible task and again, we’ve already accomplished several miracles, and we’re going to continue to aim for more miracles,” a U.S. official said.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
By Jacki Thrapp
