Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the White House’s executive committee to run Gaza is problematic for Israel.
The Prime Minister’s Office:
The announcement regarding the composition of the Gaza Executive Board, which is subordinate to the Board of Peace, was not coordinated with Israel and runs contrary to its policy.
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) January 17, 2026
Tel Aviv did not provide details on its issues with Trump’s Gaza board. A source told Haaretz that the public rebuke was for show, and Netanyahu was aware of the planning for the executive committee.
Netanyahu’s public statement drew a sharp rebuke from Washington. “This is our show, not his show. We managed to do things in Gaza in recent months nobody thought was possible, and we are going to continue moving,” a US official told Axios in response to the Israeli Prime Minister’s statement. “If he wants us to deal with Gaza, it will have to be our way. We worked over him. Let him focus on Iran and let us deal with Gaza. We are not going to argue with him. He will do his politics and we will keep moving forward with our plan. He can’t really go against us.”
On Friday, the White House announced that Trump was the chair of the executive committee that includes Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The executive committee will carry out the directives of the Board of Peace, led by President Donald Trump. The President has invited some world leaders to join the board and is selling seats for $1 billion.
With the creation of the executive committee, the White House claimed that Trump’s Gaza peace deal had advanced to phase two. However, Hamas also objects to the executive committee. The Palestinian group points out that Tel Aviv has failed to uphold several of its commitments in phase one, including opening the Rafah crossing and allowing temporary housing into Gaza.
Tel Aviv claims that Hamas is violating the agreement by not returning the body of an Israeli captive. So far, the Palestinian group had released the 20 living hostages and the bodies of 27 of the 28 deceased captives. Netanyahu has stated he will not allow the Rafah crossing to open until the remains of the final Israeli is returned.
