Trump’s Board of Peace hands Hamas disarmament proposal: Sources

JERUSALEM – US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace has presented Hamas with a written proposal on how it could lay down its weapons, two sources said, a step the Palestinian militants have thus far refused to take as he pushes on with his plan for Gaza’s future.

The proposal, first reported by broadcasting organisation NPR, was submitted to Hamas during meetings in Cairo over the past week, one of the sources said.

The talks were attended by Mr Nickolay Mladenov and Mr Aryeh Lightstone, the two sources familiar with the matter said. Mr Mladenov is the Trump-appointed Board of Peace envoy to Gaza. Mr Lightstone is a US aide to Mr Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Mr Trump’s Gaza plan, to which Israel and Hamas agreed in October, sees Israeli troops withdrawing from Gaza and reconstruction starting as Hamas lays down its weapons.

Mr Mladenov on March 19 said that serious efforts were under way to bring relief to war-torn Gaza, with a framework agreed by the mediators that could advance reconstruction in the enclave, much of which lies in ruins.

“It is now on the table. It requires one clear choice: full decommissioning by Hamas and every armed group, with no exceptions and no carve-outs. In this season of hope, may those responsible make the right choice for the Palestinian people,” Mr Mladenov said on X in a post for the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr.

Representatives of Hamas were not immediately available for comment on March 21, the second day of the holiday. Talks on disarmament had been placed on hold at the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran which began on Feb 28.

Amnesty offer may be on the table

US officials have said that Iran-backed Hamas could be offered amnesty in any deal under which they agree to lay down any heavy weaponry and light arms including rifles.

Sources close to Hamas say the group would likely refuse to give up their rifles for fear of attacks by rival militias in Gaza, some of which have backing from Israel. Hamas and its rivals have staged deadly attacks on one another since the October ceasefire.

One of the sources said much would depend on what is acceptable to Israel, which demands the group’s complete disarmament.

Some of Hamas’ prominent officials have rejected outright any disarmament over the past few months.

Israel has shown no sign of withdrawing its troops who are in control of around half of Gaza’s territory, with Hamas keeping a firm grip on the other half of the enclave and its population of two million. Most of them have been rendered homeless by two years of devastating war.

The source said that amnesty and targeted investments in Gaza were being offered as incentives for Hamas, but said that it was unclear whether the Board of Peace would have funds to pay for it.

Mr Trump garnered some US$7 billion (S$9 billion) in pledges in February from countries, including some in the Gulf, before those same countries came under attack by Iran in a widening Middle East war.

The source said that only a small amount of those pledged funds have actually been provided, without specifying sums. REUTERS