Washington, D.C. — The search for a viable future for Gaza intensified this week as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump advanced a series of high-profile discussions and controversial proposals, even as the fighting in the war-torn enclave shows no sign of abating. With both leaders under mounting pressure—Netanyahu from a restless Israeli public, and Trump from international critics—plans for a post-Hamas Gaza are being shaped in real time, but what that future will look like remains hotly contested.
On August 27, 2025, President Trump convened a large meeting at the White House, drawing together Israeli officials and his own top advisers to discuss what many are calling the "day after" scenario in Gaza. Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy for peace missions, described the gathering as a "very comprehensive plan we’re putting together on the next day that I think many people are going to be, they’re going to see how robust it is and how well-meaning it is." He emphasized that the plan reflects "President Trump’s humanitarian motives here," according to Fox News. A White House official later confirmed that the meeting took place as described.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar was also in Washington for talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, while Israel’s Minister of Strategic Affairs, Ron Dermer, joined the diplomatic push. The flurry of activity signals that both Washington and Jerusalem are eager to project momentum on the diplomatic front, even as the reality on the ground remains grim. As reported by The Straits Times, Witkoff cautioned that "fighting may not stop before the end of the year," dampening hopes for an immediate breakthrough.
Netanyahu, in an exclusive interview with Breitbart News, underscored the importance of removing Hamas as the precondition for any meaningful change in Gaza. "It will not change if Hamas remains there, and we have to get rid of Hamas," he stated. Netanyahu revealed that, as Israel’s military campaign nears its conclusion, some Gazans have begun to fight alongside Israeli forces against Hamas. "Once they see that we’re approaching the end of our military campaign, and we have one or two strongholds of Hamas left, primarily in the city of Gaza along the coast...they join us and they fight Hamas. They actually fight Hamas."
While Netanyahu has floated the idea of a civilian authority to run Gaza, he has made clear that neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority—currently governing the West Bank—should have any role, insisting instead that Israel must maintain security control. Trump, for his part, has put forward a series of provocative ideas, including the United States "taking over" and "owning" Gaza, and even transforming the strip into a Mediterranean beach resort. These suggestions, while sometimes delivered with a wink, have nonetheless changed the strategic conversation, raising questions about long-term U.S. involvement and the fate of Gaza’s Palestinian population.
Yet, such plans have drawn sharp criticism. Trump’s musings about a "Trump Riviera"—a luxury resort rising from Gaza’s rubble—have been lampooned as fantastical and derided for potentially displacing Palestinians permanently. According to The Straits Times, one rumored proposal would see up to half a million Gazans paid to relocate to other parts of the Middle East, freeing up coastal land for development. Witkoff has said that rebuilding Gaza "would take decades" and that "temporary relocation for Palestinians in third countries would make sense." Israeli officials are reportedly in quiet talks with countries in Africa and the Middle East to accept Palestinians from Gaza, a move that advocates and international law experts warn may constitute a war crime.
Trump, however, has insisted that he does not support the forcible removal of Palestinians from Gaza. Still, the mere discussion of relocation has alarmed humanitarian groups and stoked fears among Palestinians about their future in the territory. Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s government faces accusations of "systematic obstruction" of humanitarian aid to Gaza, with a United Nations agency declaring that famine has resulted from these restrictions. Netanyahu has dismissed such claims as a "lie," and the Trump administration has joined Israel in rejecting the UN’s famine determination. Acting U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea told the UN Security Council on August 27 that Israel had "enabled an unprecedented amount of more than two million tonnes of aid to flow into the Gaza Strip," urging the UN to stop "echoing false narratives." The U.S. position, however, has left it isolated even among close European allies; at the same meeting, British Ambassador Barbara Woodward called on Israel to "immediately lift restrictions and allow food, medical supplies and fuel to reach those in desperate need."
The diplomatic maneuvering comes against a backdrop of stalled ceasefire talks. Qatar and Egypt have criticized Israel for not responding to a ceasefire proposal that Hamas accepted, which closely followed a previous U.S. plan. Netanyahu has said he seeks a deal in which Hamas would release approximately 20 living and 30 deceased hostages taken during the October 7, 2023, attack, and for Hamas to demilitarize and abdicate power in Gaza. Witkoff stated that Trump backs Netanyahu’s demand that all hostages be released in one transfer, not over several weeks: "That’s President Trump’s official position," Witkoff said on Fox News. "I think that he has said to himself, you don’t need to keep those hostages. We’ll have a negotiation if they want as to what next day looks like in Gaza after this is all done, and what the definition of Hamas is. We can talk about those things."
Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate, and the potential for a full-scale Israeli offensive on Gaza City looms large. Such an operation could displace up to a million residents, exacerbating what many already describe as a catastrophic crisis. Netanyahu’s government is feeling the heat at home as well; opinion polls indicate that up to 80% of Israelis now want a ceasefire and the return of hostages, and mass demonstrations have erupted in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, with hundreds of thousands marching against the war.
The diplomatic landscape is further complicated by a tangle of actors and interests. Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, who previously worked on Gaza-related peace plans, is back in the mix, reportedly discussing with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas the possibility of a moderate PA administration in Gaza. Yet, as The Straits Times notes, "no one knows for sure what Mr Blair’s rumoured peace plan contains," and most Western diplomats privately dismiss the more grandiose "Trump Riviera" proposals as unrealistic.
With the annual UN General Assembly meeting in New York fast approaching, the stakes are rising. Some Western countries are reportedly preparing to recognize Palestine as an independent state if no diplomatic progress is made. For both Israel and the U.S., the pressure to be seen as engaged in good-faith negotiations is mounting, even as the actual substance of their proposals remains opaque or contradictory.
As the war grinds on and the humanitarian toll mounts, the world waits to see whether the flurry of plans and meetings in Washington will yield any tangible path forward—or whether, as many fear, Gaza’s future will remain mired in uncertainty and controversy.
