The US-led Civil-Military Coordination Center, where American and allied forces coordinate with their Israeli counterparts to monitor the ceasefire in Gaza, in Kiryat Gat, Israel, November 19, 2025. AHIKAM SERI / AFP
"Everybody wants to be on it," Donald Trump declared on Sunday, January 11, convinced of the pulling power of the "Board of Peace" he proposes to chair to determine Gaza's future. Three months after the ceasefire of October 2025 took effect, it remains to be seen which national leaders will choose to join. However, the White House already named its first executive body on Friday, January 16, whose task is to launch "Phase Two" of a fragile peace process now at risk of deadlock.
The nominees are loyalists: Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner (who has been involved since summer 2025), the president's envoy Steve Witkoff, their representatives in Israel over recent months, and adviser Tony Blair, a former UK prime minister. Representatives of mediator states Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, as well as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are also on the board. Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov, a former United Nations envoy to the Middle East, will lead as executive director.
