Trump's mediators offer Hamas a formal proposal to give up its weapons in Gaza

+ Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Planet Money Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions The Best Music of 2025 About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Trump's mediators offer Hamas a formal proposal to give up its weapons in Gaza President Trump's Board of Peace has quietly given Hamas a proposal to hand over all of its weapons to ensure Gaza's reconstruction. World Trump's mediators offer Hamas a formal proposal to give up its weapons in Gaza March 20, 20266:47 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition Daniel Estrin Trump's mediators offer Hamas a formal proposal to give up its weapons in Gaza Listen &middot; 2:20 2:20 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5753871/nx-s1-9696210" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript President Trump's Board of Peace has quietly given Hamas a proposal to hand over all of its weapons to ensure Gaza's reconstruction. Sponsor Message STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: And we have some news this morning about the quiet diplomacy with Hamas. NPR has learned that mediators presented the Palestinian militant group in Gaza with a written proposal for giving up its weapons. NPR's Daniel Estrin reports from Jerusalem.

+ DANIEL ESTRIN, BYLINE: Hamas' military capabilities were badly degraded in the Gaza war, but it's still the most powerful armed group there. After the ceasefire was declared six months ago, Hamas said it was willing to discuss the question of its weapons but was waiting for a formal U.S. proposal. Now that proposal has been laid on the table. NPR spoke with a senior U.S. official, an additional official from the Mideast and a third person briefed on the proposal. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss this quiet diplomacy. Mediators gave Hamas the proposal in Cairo last week. It calls for Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza to hand over all their weapons and for a new transitional leadership in Gaza to be solely responsible for all arms in Gaza. Robert Danin was a senior official in the U.S. State Department and White House specializing in the Middle East. ROBERT DANIN: The idea itself that Hamas would disarm is not out of the question. The question is, when and under what circumstances and at what price? ESTRIN: He says the main price Hamas seeks is political legitimacy in Palestinian leadership, even beyond Gaza. A Hamas official told NPR the group has received the proposal but is waiting to see the results of the Iran war. Danin says the Iran war allows Hamas to buy time. DANIN: No doubt the Iran war is something of a gift to Hamas. With the United States, Israel and even the Arab partners all focused elsewhere, pressure is alleviated for them to take actions that they don't really want to take. DANIN: President Trump's Board of Peace high representative, Nickolay Mladenov, said on social media, if Hamas agrees to give up its weapons, there would be reconstruction in Gaza. That's the same thing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants, as he said earlier this year. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU: (Speaking Hebrew). ESTRIN: "There will be no reconstruction of Gaza before the disarmament of Gaza." Daniel Estrin, NPR News, Jerusalem. (SOUNDBITE OF OF TWO MINDS' "TRANSITION 001: DEPARTURE") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor MessageBecome an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{1167:function(e,n,c){e.exports=c(323)},323:function(e,n,c){"use strict";c.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([c.e(1),c.e(2),c.e(3),c.e(4),c.e(84)]).then(function(e){c(3),c(1140),c(116),c(94),c(52),c(493),c(239),c(102),c(104),c(1141),c(143),c(1142),c(238),c(48),c(1143)}.bind(null,c)).catch(c.oe)}},[[1167,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();