A pair of US officials expressed significant optimism about the chances for stabilizing Gaza, during a Wednesday briefing held shortly after Washington announced the start of a new phase of President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in the coastal enclave.

“For the first time in Gaza in almost a long time, there’s no Palestinian Authority and there’s no Hamas governing it. This really has the potential to be the beginning of a new era,” one of the US officials said, speaking to a group of reporters on condition of anonymity.

Hours earlier, Egypt announced the establishment of a transitional Palestinian technocratic committee that will be tasked with running daily affairs in the Gaza Strip in place of Hamas. It is one of several bodies that the US is establishing as part of the second phase of Trump’s plan, after a phase one ceasefire was inked on October 9.

Since then, intensive Israeli military operations in the Strip have largely halted; the IDF withdrew to a new demarcation known as the Yellow Line, leaving it in control of roughly 53% of Gaza; all 20 living Israeli hostages were returned in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners; 27 of the 28 bodies of deceased Israeli hostages have also been handed over; and a surge of aid has entered the enclave, alleviating an ongoing humanitarian crisis as winter peaks.

While Trump within days of the October ceasefire declared that phase two of his plan had already begun, the US struggled to make that announcement a reality amid mutual allegations of ceasefire violations, and widespread skepticism that Hamas will agree to disarm or that Israel will agree to further withdraw from the Strip as envisioned by Trump’s plan.

Unmoved by those concerns, US special envoy Steve Witkoff announced on Wednesday the “launch of phase two,” where the goal will be “moving from ceasefire to demilitarization, technocratic governance and reconstruction.”

The US officials briefing reporters hours later acknowledged heavy doubt in Jerusalem over the prospect of Hamas disarming, but they insisted that the terrorist group has indicated its readiness to do so.

“We’ve talked to a number of Hamas people, and we’re hearing throughout the Arab world that people don’t want to be at war anymore. They want peace. They want a better economic future for their families. They want credible homes,” said a second US official on the briefing. “They want what everybody else in this world wants — just a good life, and a good life doesn’t occur through military means.”

The officials proceeded to offer status updates on the other bodies that will be established as part of the second phase, including the Board of Peace, which will oversee the entire operation and the International Stabilization Force, which in turn will help secure the Strip in place of the IDF. While officials familiar with the matter have told The Times of Israel in recent weeks that Washington has struggled to recruit allies abroad to serve on either forum, the two Trump aides briefing reporters insisted that Washington has received more than enough assistance to move its Gaza plan forward.

The US official touted the humanitarian operation since the ceasefire and phase one of Trump’s plan came into place in October, saying 53,120 trucks of aid — two million pallets worth — have entered the Strip since and that cooperation between Israel and the UN has increased.

While basic food supplies have indeed increased........

© The Times of Israel