Driving the news: The Board of Peace — the US-created body overseeing postwar Gaza reconstruction — released a 15-point Roadmap on Friday. Trump called it a 'monumental step.' Hamas called it 'difficult and painful' and moved immediately to water it down.
The big picture: The plan's centerpiece is full Hamas disarmament. It also envisions a phased IDF withdrawal, a technocratic civilian government under Dr. Ali Shaath, and an International Stabilization Force to monitor compliance. The stated end goal: 'One Authority, One Law, One Weapon.'
Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov leads the initiative. Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon said Israel looks forward to implementing it — but added a sharp caveat: 'We have to verify what they are doing, not what they are saying.'
Between the lines: Hamas senior negotiator Ghazi Hamad is demanding two things. First, immediate IDF withdrawal to pre-ceasefire positions. Second, any surrendered weapons handed to the Palestinian Authority — not an international body. Both demands would let Hamas rearm at will.
Reality check: According to analysts Mark Dubowitz and Ben Cohen of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, international forces will monitor. They will not confront Hamas. Only Israel will. Any roadmap that limits Israel's ability to act against a reconstituting Hamas hollows out its own security guarantee.
The bottom line: Disarmament on paper means nothing without enforcement teeth — and enforcement without Israel means nothing at all. Gaza's reconstruction clock cannot start while Hamas keeps its weapons. The Roadmap is serious. Hamas knows it. That is exactly why they are fighting it.