ISTANBUL

US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, presented Arab and Muslim leaders with a 21-point plan in New York this week to end the Israeli war in Gaza and establish a post-Hamas governing framework, Axios news website reported.

According to the outlet, Trump told participants at a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly that the war must end urgently, warning that each day it continues, Israel becomes increasingly isolated internationally.

Axios said the plan’s main elements include the release of all remaining Israeli hostages, a permanent ceasefire and a phased Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

It also envisions a new administration in Gaza without Hamas, with some involvement from the Palestinian Authority, alongside a multinational security force made up of Palestinians and troops from Arab and Muslim countries.

The proposal further calls for Arab and Muslim states to fund reconstruction and support the new administration in Gaza.

Axios said Trump stressed Washington would not allow Israel to annex parts of the occupied West Bank or Gaza.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Witkoff later met with foreign ministers from several Arab states to discuss turning the principles into an operational framework. Trump told leaders the next step would be to present the plan to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their upcoming meeting at the White House next week.

‏The Israeli opposition and hostage families accuse Netanyahu of prolonging the war for political survival, warning that any withdrawal from Gaza could topple his coalition.

The Israeli army has continued a brutal offensive on Gaza, killing more than 65,400 ‏Palestinians since October ‏2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.

UN investigators recently concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, home to a population of 2.4 million.

Israeli government officials have threatened to annex the West Bank in retaliation for a wave of Western recognition of Palestinian statehood.

Since Sunday, 11 countries – the UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Luxembourg, Belgium, Andorra, France, Malta, Monaco and San Marino – have officially recognized the state of Palestine, raising the total number of recognitions to 159 out of 193 UN member states.