Daily Briefing July 31 – As Hamas agrees to lay down weapons, Israel is up in arms

Deputy Editor Amanda Borschel-Dan is the host of The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, What Matters Now and The Reel Schmooze podcasts, and heads up The Times of Israel’s features.

Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel’s US bureau chief

Welcome to The Times of Israel’s Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what’s happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.

US bureau chief Jacob Magid joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today’s episode.

US President Donald Trump announced Thursday that his Board of Peace had reached an agreement on the “complete disarmament of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza.”

We learn how the deal was brought to the table this week and who was behind it, as well as the expected rollout of Hamas laying down its weapons and potential reconstruction in Gaza.

Magid delves into what has actually been agreed by Hamas in the meantime — and what its conditions for Israel are. At recording time, officially Israel is still mum; however, murmurings of discontent and dissent are growing. What are Israel’s claims?

Magid explains that the proposal would see Hamas gradually hand over its weapons to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, the Board of Peace-overseen panel of Palestinian technocrats who are tasked with replacing the terror group in governing the Strip. Who could be other potential players in the Strip?

Check out The Times of Israel’s ongoing liveblog for more updates.

Trump: Board of Peace has reached agreement on ‘complete disarmament’ of Hamas

Trump will be ‘very disappointed’ if Israel obstructs his Gaza plan, US official warns

Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.

The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident – ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded – I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.

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— Stav Levaton, military reporter