Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former US President Donald Trump, held a high-level meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Monday, 10th November 2025, to discuss the progression of the fragile Gaza ceasefire.
Negotiating the Next Stage
According to an Israeli government official, the talks centred on the progress and future of the ceasefire, brokered by the United States. A spokesperson confirmed that while the first phase is ongoing, details for the second phase are being continuously worked out.
Mr Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump and was instrumental in developing the initial White House plan to de-escalate the conflict, now faces a similar challenge. The key issues remain unclear, as the positions of Hamas and Israel on troop withdrawal and the future governance of Gaza have yet to be fully established.
Ceasefire Phases and Hostage Returns
The first phase of the ceasefire, which began on 10 October 2025, has focused on three primary objectives: stopping the fighting, releasing all hostages, and increasing the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
This initial stage is now nearing its conclusion. Hamas has returned all 20 living hostages in exchange for the release of nearly 2,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
In a significant development, the militant group has also returned the remains of hostages. As part of the agreement, 24 sets of remains have been handed over, with just four bodies left to be returned under the ceasefire terms.
The latest remains, released on Sunday, were identified as those of Hadar Goldin, a 23-year-old Israeli soldier killed in Gaza in 2014. His death occurred just two hours after a ceasefire took effect during that year's war, and his family had campaigned for 11 years to bring his body home. His remains were the only ones in Gaza that predated the current conflict.
Under the exchange arrangement, Israel has released the remains of 15 Palestinians for each Israeli hostage returned, handing over 315 bodies in total. However, the Gaza health ministry reports that a lack of DNA testing kits is complicating forensic work, and only 91 of these have been identified so far.
The Road Ahead and Lasting Impact
The unresolved second phase of the ceasefire presents the most significant hurdles. The details, which include deploying an international security force, disarming Hamas, and establishing a governance structure for postwar Gaza, have not been agreed upon by the parties.
The context for these delicate negotiations is the devastating conflict that began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 hostages. Israel's subsequent retaliatory offensive in the Gaza Strip has, according to health officials in the enclave, resulted in the deaths of over 69,000 Palestinians as of the previous Saturday. This figure does not differentiate between civilians and fighters.
