In an article published in Yisrael Hayom, journalist Amit Segal recounted the responses of US envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff to the skeptical looks around them in the Prime Minister’s Office during discussions on the “disarmament of Hamas.”

The looks on the Israelis’ faces conveyed, “How naïve to think Hamas would ever disarm on its own, without the IDF stepping in.”

“I was born at night,” Kushner reassured them, “but not last night.” Kushner and Witkoff made clear they harbored no illusions about Hamas or the people of Gaza, saying, “We remember well that not a single Gazan called the IDF hotline to help locate hostages. Even in Nazi Germany there were Righteous Among the Nations—and that was without a $5 million reward.”

Although differences remain between Washington and Jerusalem over Gaza, they are reportedly smaller than suggested publicly.

“Ultimately, the destruction of Hamas will likely still fall to the IDF,” a senior U.S. official said. “But what’s the harm in starting with a peaceful disarmament initiative? It’s obvious Hamas is stalling and will try to hold on to weapons—but if, say, 10,000 Kalashnikovs are handed over and 50 tunnels destroyed without a fight, what’s the downside? None of us are in a rush. It’ll just save the IDF some work.”

US officials believe there will never be another large-scale war between Israel and Gaza like the one that just ended—both because the international community won’t permit it and because Israel will use the time to build temporary housing to relocate a significant part of Gaza’s population, reducing civilian density in combat zones. Any future fighting, they predict, would be swifter, unencumbered by hostage concerns, and conducted with minimal harm to civilians.

“The world might not be on your side,” Kushner and Witkoff told Netanyahu, “but it’s absolutely against Hamas. Take advantage of that.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)