The Trump administration’s long-delayed rollout of its Gaza stabilization plan is finally moving forward, with Washington now eyeing the end of this month to formally announce the creation of the “Board of Peace,” according to a senior European official briefed on the discussions.

The board, envisioned as the top international authority overseeing management of the Gaza Strip under the U.S. peace framework, is slated to be chaired by President Donald Trump. Its announcement is expected to coincide with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to the United States for high-level talks at Mar-a-Lago on December 29.

Officials involved in hammering out the plan’s second phase — which includes Israel, the U.S. and several Arab mediators — say the timing has been in flux for weeks. According to the European official, American interlocutors initially floated a specific mid-December date, only for it to quietly disappear.

“Washington has now signaled it might not be so soon,” the official told The Times of Israel, but added that the latest working assumption is that the announcement will land “at the end of this month,” during Netanyahu’s visit.

Once the Board of Peace is announced, it is expected to move immediately to establish an “executive committee” made up of international representatives. That body will then nominate a slate of Palestinian technocrats who would handle day-to-day civilian management inside the Strip — a central pillar of the U.S. proposal to shift governance away from Hamas while avoiding a permanent Israeli reoccupation.

Momentum for the rollout appeared to build earlier this week when U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz signaled that several pieces of the second phase are nearing completion. Waltz said he expects “imminent” announcements not only on the Board of Peace, but also on the Palestinian technocratic committee and the proposed international force that would patrol Gaza.

Netanyahu’s office confirmed Wednesday evening that he will meet Trump on December 29, with his U.S. trip running from December 28 to January 1. The prime minister is expected to push for greater Israeli input into the oversight structure and tighter mechanisms to ensure Gaza does not rearm.

The evolving timeline reflects the political sensitivities surrounding the plan. Trump is poised to take personal ownership of the next stage, but any new governance structure for Gaza will face scrutiny in Jerusalem, skepticism in Ramallah, and intense regional jockeying from Arab governments wary of being pulled into responsibility for the Strip.

For now, diplomats say the end-of-month target is holding. But with the administration still aligning international partners and smoothing over Israeli reservations, even U.S. officials concede privately that nothing will be final until the president makes the announcement himself — likely with Netanyahu beside him in Palm Beach.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)