A United States Air Force F-16 fighter jet patrols the skies over the Middle East, July 2026. Credit: U.S. Central Command.
(July 30, 2026 / JNS)
The U.S. military launched what it described as a “heavy wave of strikes” against Iranian targets on Wednesday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Washington would be “hitting them hard” in response to Tehran’s recent attacks on American forces.
U.S. Central Command said the “powerful response,” which lasted for some two hours, hit dozens of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sites across the Islamic Republic. According to CENTCOM, it struck military command centers, missile and drone facilities, coastal surveillance and defense sites, as well as maritime capabilities. The military said the strikes were intended to further reduce threats posed by the Islamic regime and its regional proxies to U.S. forces, commercial shipping and neighboring Gulf states.
The operation followed what CENTCOM described as an “attempted surprise attack” on July 28, when the IRGC fired multiple ballistic missiles at U.S. forces across the region.
All the Iranian missiles were intercepted and no casualties or damage was reported.
Earlier on Wednesday, Trump on threatened further military action against Iran in response to the renewed attacks.
“We’re going to beat the f***ing sh** out of them,” Trump said in a phone interview with Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst. “We’ll be hitting them hard. They’re going to get a beating,” the president added.
The IRGC threatened on Thursday morning that “the aggressor will be punished today,” adding that any country assisting the U.S. militarily would face a “harsh response,” according to Iran’s state-run IRNA outlet.
Earlier on Thursday, the Islamic Republic launched missile and drone strikes on Jordan and Kuwait, the two countries said. The assault targeting Kuwait hit a building belonging to a Chinese company in northern Kuwait, the country’s defense ministry said in a post on X. The attack killed a worker at the facility and inflicted “significant” damage, the post added.
In Jordan, air defenses intercepted five Iranian ballistic missiles on Thursday, a military source told the Hashemite Kingdom’s official Petra News Agency. The missiles were shot down “efficiently and professionally, resulting in the thwarting of the attempted targeting of the kingdom’s territory, without any human casualties being recorded,” the source said.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian government said on Thursday that an initial investigation found that a drone caused a fire aboard two ships at Damietta Port in northern Egypt a day earlier. No party has claimed responsibility, but Iranian sources have told The New York Times that the attack was “designed to show that global shipping and energy supplies could be more deeply disrupted if Iran chose to escalate.”
Tehran is widely presumed to be behind the drone strike.
The pact, which the terrorist group has yet to confirm accepting, “is a critical step toward Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government,” the U.S. president and Board of Peace chair said.
U.S. President Donald Trump participates in the Board of Peace charter announcement and signing ceremony during the World Economic Forum at the Davos Congress Center in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 22, 2026. Credit: Daniel Torok/White House.
(July 30, 2026 / JNS)
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that the Board of Peace, which he chairs, reached an agreement with Hamas for the complete disarmament of the terrorist groups that rule and control the Gaza Strip.
Trump said that it was a “major milestone in the implementation” of his 20-point plan to bring an end to the Israel-Hamas war and begin the recovery process in the enclave.
The pact will be implemented in phases, as the Israel Defense Forces withdraws as disarmament progresses, according to Trump.
An International Stabilization Force under the auspices of the Board of Peace is to work in tandem with a newly built Palestinian police force to provide security.
Trump praised Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, which helped mediate with Hamas, he said.
“This agreement is a critical step toward Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government that will work closely with the Board of Peace to help the Palestinian people,” Trump wrote. “At the same time, Israel will have the security it deserves.”
Israel has not commented officially on the development, although officials have said that they are skeptical that Hamas will follow through.
Hamas has not commented, though two senior officials confirmed the deal anonymously to AFP.
A U.S. official said that Iran tried unsuccessfully to persuade Hamas not to agree to the deal.
Officials on a call with reporters following Trump’s post acknowledged that there is no trust between Israel and Hamas. The proposal is based on “zero trust” but “with every step verified,” they said.
An official involved in negotiations said that the disarmament process would take place over a matter of weeks, but urged reporters not to get hung up on timelines.
“Implementing the agreement will take time,” an official said, decrying nonprofits and terrorists in the enclave that set up a system “for people to profit from the misery.”
Once disarmament is completed, “the technocratic government will have a monopoly on weapons in the Gaza Strip,” an official said.
Negotiations seemingly hit a dead end several times after an October ceasefire that followed two years of war on the heels of the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks.
A U.S. official expressed confidence that Israel would fulfill its obligations under the peace plan, as Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups transfer responsibility for civil and security matters to the technocratic transitional government formed under the Board of Peace.
Board of Peace announces roadmap
The U.S.-backed Board of Peace announced on Friday that Hamas has agreed to a detailed roadmap for implementing the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire, including the decommissioning of its weapons and a transition to civilian governance.
The Board of Peace, together with mediators from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the United States, said the agreement concludes months of negotiations aimed at advancing Trump’s vision for postwar Gaza under the Comprehensive Peace Plan and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2803.
According to the Board of Peace, the agreement marks the first time Hamas has formally committed to an actionable plan to relinquish all of its weapons, a process that a phased Israeli military withdrawal from the Gaza Strip would follow.
The organization said the focus now shifts to implementation, with the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG) expected to assume phased governing authority, backed by the International Stabilization Force (ISF), while restoring security, the rule of law and humanitarian services.
Nickolay Mladenov, executive chairman of the Board of Peace, described the agreement as the result of months of difficult negotiations.
“What the agreement says matters. What happens next matters even more,” Mladenov wrote on X. “Implementation and verification have to be real. Withdrawal must move in lockstep with decommissioning.”
He thanked Trump for driving the negotiations, as well as the United States, Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates for their roles in the talks.
“The Palestinian people need the political and practical backing to take charge of their own future,” Mladenov wrote, adding that the goal is “a Gaza rebuilt, governed by Palestinians and at peace with Israel.”
The announcement came after Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir rejected reports of an emerging agreement with Hamas.
“Destroying Hamas and encouraging the emigration of Palestinians is the only solution in Gaza that Israel is prepared to be a partner in,” Ben-Gvir said on Thursday, insisting Israel should not sign any agreement with the terrorist organization through mediators.
A diplomatic source familiar with the Cairo negotiations told JNS on Thursday that Hamas would have “no role in governing Gaza, either openly or behind the scenes,” with the NCAG assuming full authority under the principle of “one authority, one law and one weapon.”
The source said the implementation roadmap calls for the decommissioning of all heavy and light weapons, the elimination of tunnels, weapons depots and weapons production facilities, with each phase independently verified before reciprocal steps are taken.
A second Israeli source told JNS that Israel continues to insist on Hamas’s complete disarmament and the full demilitarization of Gaza as a precondition for any broader political process.
“There will be no Israeli withdrawal from the Yellow Line in the Gaza Strip before Hamas disarms and demilitarizes,” the source said, adding that Jerusalem had conveyed objections to aspects of the proposed roadmap to former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who serves on the executive board of the Board of Peace.
US and Board of Peace officials brief reporters on Gaza demilitarization deal, reveal that Tehran attempted to sabotage negotiations and warn that a rejection from Israel would disappoint Trump.
Signing of Gaza Peace DealMichael Kappeler/dpa via Reuters Connect
US administration officials and members of the Gaza Board of Peace spoke with reporters on Thursday night regarding the historic agreement announced by President Donald Trump, under which Hamas and other terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip will disarm.
Senior administration officials emphasized the close coordination with Jerusalem throughout the negotiation process, saying that the Americans coordinated “very closely” with Israel at every step. The officials acknowledged that the Israelis were extremely skeptical, but added “they are not being asked to do much right now”. They further stated that this agreement is not based on trust, but on fulfilling conditions on the ground and added that Washington will ensure that Israel honors its commitments as well.
At the same time, a senior US official noted that Israel was dissatisfied with the decision to include Turkey and Qatar on the Board of Peace executive. Despite this, he maintained that both nations – alongside Egypt – played a vital role in advancing the process and exerting heavy pressure on Hamas to reach terms.
A US official added that “if Israel refuses the agreement, President Trump will be disappointed.”
A Gaza Board of Peace representative noted that, for the first time, Hamas and all other factions have agreed to accept the framework in full alongside its implementation plan. The official stated that there will be an “absolute monopoly” on weapons, and that Hamas will completely step down from governing Gaza. According to the official, by the end of the process, the transitional government established by the Board of Peace will hold complete control over weaponry in the Strip.
American officials clarified that the planned technocratic government will serve as “an alternative to both the Palestinian Authority and Hamas.” They also revealed that Tehran attempted to derail negotiations: “Iran tried to convince Hamas to reject the deal, but the US managed to overcome that.”
According to the officials, the demilitarization plan is expected to launch in the coming weeks and unfold in gradual phases. They explained that the first weapons handed over will belong to the local police, followed by the dismantling of heavy weaponry, and added that all military activity in Gaza will need to cease as part of implementation.
The officials stated that the disarmament process will take time, but noted that over the past eight months, the Americans have already worked to ensure Gaza residents receive aid without Hamas benefiting from it.
President Trump announced the agreement earlier on Thursday in a post on Truth Social, hailing the agreement as “a monumental step toward lasting PEACE and SECURITY.”
“This agreement is a critical step towards Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government that will work closely with the Board of Peace to help the Palestinian people. At the same time, Israel will have the security it deserves, with Gaza no longer used as a base for terror attacks,” Trump wrote.
Trump’s announcement came hours after Channel 13 News revealed that Hamas had asked Trump for a 10- to 15-year long-term truce in Gaza.
According to the report, Hamas leaders drafted a letter in English that was sent to the White House. In it, they tell President Trump that they are prepared to honor an agreement and disarm, but request a long-term ceasefire under which Israel would refrain from attacking Gaza, cease targeted killings of senior Hamas officials, and begin a gradual withdrawal of its forces from the Strip.
Israeli officials have rejected the proposal, describing it as a Hamas “spin.” They argue that its terms do not correspond to the Trump framework agreed upon in October of last year.
Earlier on Thursday, a senior Israeli diplomatic official stressed that the issue of Gaza did not come up at all during the meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump in Washington this week.
The official stressed, “Israel is demanding the complete disarmament of Hamas, including the removal of all weapons from the Gaza Strip and the territory’s full demilitarization, as a precondition for any process. The reported 15-point document does not provide an adequate response to these demands, and Israel has conveyed its reservations on the matter to envoy Tony Blair.”
He added, “There will be no Israeli withdrawal from the Yellow Line in the Gaza Strip before Hamas is disarmed and the Strip is fully demilitarized.”
