Trump’s son-in-law and special envoy says the US will not ‘restrict Israel’s right to defend itself’ as strikes on Gaza continue.
Published On 17 Aug 2026
United States envoy Jared Kushner has stressed that the administration of President Donald Trump will not allow reconstruction in the devastated Gaza Strip until Hamas gives up its weapons.
Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, but the meeting did not produce a breakthrough to implement a roadmap for Gaza that Hamas already agreed to.
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“We have a plan to rebuild Gaza, but we will not allow Gaza to be rebuilt until the demilitarisation occurs,” Kushner told Fox News in an interview.
“Nobody wants to put more money into a place that’s gone on for so long if it’s just going to be taken over by terrorists or blown up again.”
Hamas had agreed to disarm as part of a US-backed process that would include Israeli withdrawal and an end to the deadly attacks on the Palestinian territory.
But Israel rejected the proposal earlier this month, saying that it would not make any concessions until Gaza is fully demilitarised.
In the interview with Fox News, Kushner – whose family has deep personal ties to Netanyahu – appeared to adopt the Israeli viewpoint in emphasising the full demilitarisation of Hamas before Israeli withdrawal.
“We’re also not going to restrict Israel’s right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats,” Kushner said. “And so we had to clarify what that means.”
Israel has been launching near-daily attacks on Gaza, killing at least 1,265 people in the enclave since a “ceasefire” came into effect last year.
Overall, Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has killed 73,399 Palestinians since October 2023.
Earlier on Monday, Trump called for an end to the Israeli strikes. “Israelis should not be striking in Gaza. Hamas agreed to lay down their weapons,” the US president said.
Over the past three years, the US has given Israel about $25bn in military aid and defended the Netanyahu government at international forums, including by imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court officials investigating the atrocities in Gaza.
Kushner emphasised that the Gaza deal benefits Israel.
“For Israel, we think this is a win-win situation, because if Hamas actually gives over the weapons and the tunnels willingly over the next 60 to 90 days, that obviously would be the elimination of a huge security threat for Israel, almost an unthinkable achievement,” he said.
“If they don’t follow through now on their commitment, everyone will see that they’re not genuine about peace, and then Israel will have a lot more support from the US and others to go and finish the job in the appropriate way.”
Kushner held a rare meeting with Hamas officials on Sunday as the US pushes for an end to the conflict.
The US envoy said the talks were “very cordial” but that Washington would judge Hamas based on the group’s actions.
“They said all the right things, but obviously, it’s very, very hard to trust a terrorist organisation that committed these terrible atrocities,” Kushner said.