Rubio says ‘good progress’ made on Gaza plan during Israel visit
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during a visit to Israel on Thursday that “good progress” had been made towards implementing the US peace plan for the Gaza Strip.
“We feel confident and positive about the progress that’s being made,” Rubio said during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu, according to a statement from the Israeli presidential office.
“We’re clear-eyed about the challenges too,” Rubio said. “But the President has made this a top priority.”
“We’ve been making good progress,” he added.
One of the obstacles to the peace plan is the planned disarmament of Hamas, which the Palestinian Islamist group rejects. The exact procedure for the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the Gaza Strip also remains an unresolved point of contention.
Netanyahu said he believed the challenges could be overcome through cooperation.
“We want to advance peace,” he stressed.
According to a report in the newspaper Israel Hayom, Rubio’s visit was also set to focus on the composition of the transitional government for the Gaza Strip envisaged in the peace plan following the end of the war.
Palestinian technocrats are to work in the Gaza Strip under the supervision of an international committee.
US Vice President JD Vance had already visited Israel before Rubio. Vance emphasized that the implementation of the US peace plan still meant a lot of work.
