Trump envoy Kushner blames Israel for Gaza stalemate, says elections make them 'irrational'
KYIV, UKRAINE: President Donald Trump’s envoy and son-in-law Jared Kushner attributed the delay in the rehabilitation of the war-torn Gaza Strip to the ongoing election preparation in Israel, as he talked about the issue during his Ukraine visit on Sunday, September 6.
Elections in Israel are scheduled for late October, and polls show a tight race between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his opponents.
Jared Kushner blames 'crazy election' for Gaza delay
Speaking from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, where he was holding talks to end the Russia-Ukraine war, Jared Kushner said, "We're working through some political issues in Israel. I think we agree with them on the end state.”
"They just have a crazy election, and that makes them a little irrational in certain regards," Kusher added.
The candid criticism of Israel comes as a rare statement, as Kushner often avoids making political remarks.
The statement is also a rare criticism of Netanyahu's government by a senior Trump administration official over the conservative Israeli leader's Gaza policy.
Kushner, who is Trump's son-in-law, did not elaborate on how the Israeli government is impeding the Gaza peace plan.
"Gaza has not worked for a very, very long time. It was basically built by NGOs and t********s," he said, adding, "Now we have a plan to go forward."
Trump administration’s advanced measures to rebuild the devastated Palestinian enclave and disarm H***s have stalled as Israel and the radical group have disagreed over the roadmap to peace.
Israeli airstrikes delaying disarmament, officials say
A US official told CBS News that Washington is unhappy with Israel over its role in the Gaza peace plan. Israel has not given the guarantees needed to create a new police force in Gaza. The force would work separately from H***s and help a new government backed by the US enter Gaza.
The official also said Israel is not allowing some of the materials needed for rebuilding Gaza to enter the region.
Nickolay Mladenov, a senior diplomat working on the US peace plan, also said in remarks to the United Nations in late August that Israel’s continued airstrikes in Gaza are making it harder to convince the radical fighters to give up their weapons.
"It only delays the demilitarization that would happen, and it obstructs the civilian transition that should take place to ensure that remilitarization will not be possible in the future," Mladenov said.
