The American envoy says that Gaza is entering the second phase of the ceasefire plan

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States said Wednesday it is moving to the next phase of a Gaza ceasefire plan that includes disarming Hamas, rebuilding the war-torn territories and creating a group of Palestinian experts that will manage day-to-day affairs in Gaza under American supervision.

President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff said in a post on X that the agreement the Republican president helped broker is entering its second phase after two years of war between Israel and Hamas, including the formation of a technocratic government in Gaza.

While Wednesday’s announcement signals a major step forward, the new government in Gaza and the ceasefire agreement face a number of huge challenges — including the deployment of an international security force to oversee the deal and the difficult process of disarming Hamas.

Read more: Trump’s ceasefire plan in the war between Israel and Hamas faces risks as it moves into a new phase

Witkoff did not provide any details about who would work in the new interim Palestinian administration that will govern Gaza. The White House did not immediately provide any further information.

The other mediators of the ceasefire agreement – Egypt, Turkey and Qatar – welcomed the formation of the Palestinian technocratic committee and said it would be headed by Ali Shaath, a former deputy minister in the Palestinian Authority.

In a joint statement, the three countries described the decision as “an important development… aimed at establishing stability and improving the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.”

Watch the clip in the player above.

Shaath is a resident of Gaza and worked as Deputy Minister of Transport in the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority. Shaath is an engineer, an expert in economic development and reconstruction, according to his biography published on the website of the Palestinian Economic Policy Research Institute.

Witkoff said that the United States expects Hamas to return the last Israeli hostage immediately as part of its obligations under the agreement, noting that “failing to do so will lead to serious consequences.”

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told Al Jazeera Mubasher on Wednesday that Witkopf’s announcement is an important and positive development, adding that the movement is ready to hand over the administration of Gaza to the independent technocratic committee and facilitate its work.

Qassem said in statements published on his Telegram channel, “Hamas is ready to engage in internal Palestinian approaches to discuss the issue of resistance weapons.”

The last hostage, Ran Gefeli, was a 24-year-old police officer who was killed fighting Hamas militants during the October 7, 2023, attack that started the war in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that he spoke on Wednesday evening with Givli’s parents, Tali and Itzik Givli, and told them that their son’s return remained a top priority.

“The declaratory step to form a committee of technocrats will not affect efforts to return Ran to Israel’s grave,” the statement said.

The statement added that Israel will act based on any information received by the mediators, and said that Hamas is required under the ceasefire agreement to do everything in its power to return all the hostages.

A ceasefire reached under Trump’s 20-point plan went into effect in October and stopped much of the fighting. Under the first phase of the three-stage agreement, Hamas released all but one of the hostages it was holding in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinians detained by Israel.

Those appointed to the technocratic committee, which Witkopf said would form part of the second phase, are part of a broader plan to end Hamas’ 18-year rule of Gaza. The appointees will manage day-to-day affairs in Gaza, under the supervision of a Trump-led “peace council,” whose members have not yet been named.

The technocratic committee will be tasked with providing public services to more than two million Palestinians in Gaza, but it faces enormous challenges and unanswered questions, including regarding its operations and financing.

The United Nations estimated that the cost of reconstruction would reach more than $50 billion. This process is expected to take years, and little money has been pledged yet.

There is also the more pressing challenge of figuring out how to take over basic services after nearly two decades of Hamas rule in Gaza and repeated rounds of conflict with Israel.

Associated Press writers Sami Magdy and Taqa Ezz El-Din in Cairo and Sam Metz in Jerusalem contributed to this report.