US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he will announce the members of the Board of Peace overseeing the postwar management of Gaza early next year, in the latest sign the effort is stalling. Last week, US officials told The Times of Israel that Washington was aiming to announce a transition to phase two of Trump’s Gaza peace deal and the members of the various bodies involved by Christmas.
But conversations are still in their initial stages regarding phase two and Hamas’s disarmament, which Israel says is a prerequisite for the reconstruction of Gaza in addition to the return of the last deceased hostage. The US has also yet to convince any country to join the International Stabilization Force that will be needed to replace Israeli forces in the eastern half of Gaza that Israel still controls.
As the two-week deadline US officials gave to reporters on December 4 for announcing the phase two transition approaches, a reporter in the White House asked Trump when he would announce the makeup of the Board of Peace. “We’ll do it early next year,” Trump responded, all but shutting down speculation that an announcement will be made earlier. He reiterated that the board will be headed by him and made up of many world leaders who have expressed interest in joining. So far, none of those people have come forward. (Read More)