Trump sets date to unveil Gaza 'day after' plan, pressures Netanyahu on West Bank

US President Donald Trump has informed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he will announce the start of his Gaza "day after" plan on 15 January, including the creation of an international "Board of Peace" to take over government of the territory from Hamas, according to Israel Hayom newspaper.

Trump has suggested he could take a direct role in the body, which he said would be formed "within weeks".

Israeli officials quoted in the report said Netanyahu did not object during the meeting, although they stressed that the comments do not yet represent a practical shift on the ground.

One member of the Israeli delegation reportedly described Trump's remarks as "statements without immediate operational meaning", while another source said the proposal was presented as a declaration rather than a question, leaving little room for Netanyahu to respond.

At a joint press conference in Florida, Trump said that disarmament of Hamas was a condition for any future governance plan, issuing a threat to the group.

"We talked about Hamas and about disarming them," he said. "There will be a short time to disarm, and we will see how things go. If they do not disarm as they agreed, there will be a price like hell. We are not looking for that, but they must disarm in a relatively short period of time."

Trump claimed that dozens of countries were prepared to act if Hamas refused to disarm.

"There are many countries ready to send soldiers to Gaza," he said. "Some of them are capable of disarming Hamas. There are 59 major countries signed on. They want to go in and erase Hamas. They do not need Israel."

He hinted that Turkey or Pakistan might be involved, a possibility that Israel has already rejected.

He also praised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and said his involvement in a post-war administrative framework would not be an issue.

"I know President Erdogan, he is a very good friend of mine," Trump said. "I respect him and Bibi respects him, and there will be no problem. I am with him all the way, and with Bibi all the way."

Netanyahu did not directly respond to the suggestion that Turkey or Pakistan could play a role in Gaza.

Israeli officials later told reporters that Trump's references to foreign troops were "unclear" and that Israel had received no formal request regarding foreign deployments near its southern border.

Pressure on Israel to change course in the West Bank

Alongside the Gaza discussions, Trump and senior advisers pressed Netanyahu to alter Israeli policy in the occupied West Bank, according to Axios news site.

A US official with direct knowledge said the White House believes that a surge in Israeli attacks, escalating settlement expansion and the financial collapse of the Palestinian Authority could undermine the Gaza agreement and block further progress on expanding the "Abraham Accords" normalisation deals.

The US side raised concerns about settler attacks on Palestinians, the legalisation of settler outposts, and steps toward de facto annexation, according to the news site.

Trump asked Netanyahu to avoid "provocative steps" and to "calm things down" in the West Bank. The official said the meeting had marked the most detailed intervention on West Bank policy by Trump in his second term.

Netanyahu acknowledged that the two sides did not fully agree.

"I would not say we agree on the West Bank 100%, but we will reach a conclusion on the West Bank," Trump said publicly after their meeting. Behind closed doors, according to the Axios report, Netanyahu said he would "take more action" against settler violence.

The conversation comes after three years in which Netanyahu's government has pursued policies that have weakened the Palestinian Authority and accelerated illegal settlement growth.

In May, Israel's security cabinet approved 22 new settlements in the West Bank, described by the UN as the "biggest expansion in new settlements in decades".

A December 2025 joint statement by the UK, Canada, several EU states and others condemned Israel's new West Bank settlements as a violation of international law that risks fuelling instability and undermining the Gaza plan and a two‑state solution.