A photograph shows tent shelters housing Palestinian families displaced by Israeli aggression — ongoing despite the cease-fire — set up along the shore in Gaza City as strong winter winds sweep the Palestinian enclave on Jan. 13, 2026. (Credit: Omar al-Qattaa/AFP)
U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff announced on Wednesday the launch of phase two of the plan to end the conflict in Gaza with the establishment of a technocratic Palestinian administration in the enclave.
According to a statement posted on the envoy's official X account, the second phase of Trump's 20-point Gaza plan includes "a transitional technocratic Palestinian administration in Gaza," which Witkoff names as the "National Committee for the Administration of Gaza."
This second phase also initiates the "full demilitarization and reconstruction of Gaza," Witkoff continues, "primarily the disarmament of all unauthorized personnel."
"The U.S. expects Hamas to comply fully with its obligations, including the immediate return of the final deceased hostage. Failure to do so will bring serious consequences," Witkoff wrote in a post on X.
Witkoff's statement does not make any mention of Trump's "Board of Peace," which the president intends to chair and which would oversee the transition in Gaza as well as the Palestinian administration itself.
When the cease-fire was agreed upon in October 2024, Hamas gave the first phase its approval while stating that the second and third phases would require a broader dialogue among Palestine's various groups and factions.
A delegation from the group arrived in Cairo on Tuesday night just ahead of Witkoff's announcement, for discussions on the cease-fire's second phase.
Egyptian mediators announced just ahead of Witkoff's statement that the majority of Palestinian factions and the presidency had offered agreed on the Palestinian technocratic committee's members and several factions released a joint statement reiterating their support.
In the statement, Palestinian factions including Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they had agreed "to support the mediators' efforts in forming the Palestinian National Transitional Committee to administer the Gaza Strip, while providing the appropriate environment" for it to begin its work.
The Ramallah-based Palestinian presidency also announced its support in official media, with a source from the office telling AFP the statement "reflects the position of the Fatah movement because President [Mahmud] Abbas is also the head of Fatah."
The Palestinian Authority's vice president, Hussein al-Sheikh, also released a statement on X on behalf of the presidency.
"The Palestinian Presidency reiterates the importance of linking the institutions of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip," the statement reads.
The statement also calls for avoiding "any administrative, legal, or security arrangements that would entrench duplication, division, separation, or fragmentation, with upholding the principle of one system, one law, and one legitimate weapon."
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