Kushner Presses Israel to Allow Safe Passage for Hamas Terrorists in Rafah

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Monday afternoon in Jerusalem with U.S. envoy Jared Kushner, who pressed Israel to allow a negotiated “safe passage” for roughly 200 Hamas terrorists trapped in tunnels beneath Rafah, according to Israeli officials.

The meeting, held at the Prime Minister’s Office, was part of ongoing talks over implementing the U.S. plan to end the Gaza war and return the remaining hostage bodies. Kushner, a central figure in the administration’s mediation efforts, arrived in Israel on Sunday. Envoy Steve Witkoff was also expected to join the discussions.

Israeli officials said Washington urged Jerusalem to consider an arrangement under which the terrorists would surrender, lay down their arms, and receive either deportation or clemency, while the tunnel network they occupy would be destroyed. “A lot of pressure is being applied from the U.S.,” one senior Israeli official said. “Given that, it’s hard to imagine we will simply eliminate them. The assessment is this could be solved by an agreement.”

A senior Turkish official told Reuters that Ankara was working to secure “safe passage” for about 200 “civilians” in the tunnels, citing Turkey’s earlier role in facilitating the return of fallen Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin. “We successfully facilitated the return of Hadar Goldin after 11 years,” the official said, describing the effort as proof of Hamas’s commitment to the cease-fire.

Israeli defense sources rejected the Turkish characterization, saying the group consists of Hamas fighters entrenched in an Israeli-controlled pocket of Rafah. The IDF said it continues to destroy tunnels and maintain operational pressure in the area.

Meanwhile, senior Hamas official Mohammad Nazzal told Al-Araby television that Hamas rejects surrender or exile from Gaza and warned that Israel and its partners would bear responsibility for any escalation.