Welcome home, Stephen 🇺🇸

Encouraging progress over the past several days. @SEPeaceMissions and I are grateful to @POTUS for his leadership and to our Ukrainian, European, and Russian counterparts for engaging constructively. There is still hard work ahead, but we have a real opportunity to move beyond this war and build a framework for lasting peace, security, and prosperity for generations to come.

A durable peace in Gaza requires an end to Hamas rule, security for Israel, and a better future for the Palestinian people. President Trump’s Board of Peace is working with our partners to turn that vision into reality. Important perspective from the @WSJ Editorial Board.

The power of a simple idea, relentless tenacity, a big heart, and brilliant legislative execution. @altcap, what you’ve helped bring to life is an extraordinary gift to America for its 250th birthday, and for generations to come. And thank you to @elonmusk for an incredibly generous and historic gift to America’s children!

The return of the hostages was a historic achievement. The signing in Sharm El Sheikh represented a commitment to what comes next. What made that day remarkable was that countries put aside profound differences to pursue something bigger: ending the war and creating the conditions for lasting peace. I’m grateful to President Trump for his leadership, President el-Sisi for hosting us, and our partners in Israel, Qatar and Turkey, for making this agreement possible. The signing was a milestone, but the true measure of its success will be what we build from it. A secure Israel. A peaceful and rebuilt Gaza. A more integrated region where children grow up with greater opportunity and less fear than their parents knew. There is much work ahead, and progress will not be easy or linear. But with big dreams and hard work, the possibility of a better future is real, and worth the effort. The greatest achievement of diplomacy is not just the conflicts we end, but the futures we make possible.

One year ago today, all 20 remaining living Israeli hostages finally came home after two years of unimaginable suffering in Gaza. Welcoming them home and seeing them reunited with their families was one of the most special moments of my life. After so much pain, uncertainty, and heartbreak, seeing families embrace their loved ones again was something I will never forget. The hostages endured hell, and their families demonstrated extraordinary strength, courage, and resilience through the darkest of times. @SEPeaceMissions and I are deeply grateful to @POTUS for his leadership and determination, @VP, @SecRubio, and our partners in Israel, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey - particularly @netanyahu, @AmbDermer, @TamimBinHamad, @MBA_AlThani_, Ali Al-Thwadi, @AlsisiOfficial, General Hasan, @EgyptForeignMin, @RTErdogan, @HakanFidan, @ikalin1, and many others who worked tirelessly to make this day possible. Above all, today belongs to the freed hostages and their families. Their strength and determination will always inspire me.

One year ago today, on October 9, 2025, we reached an agreement on President Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza many believed impossible. After two years of devastating war, the agreement created a path to reunite hostage families with their loved ones, bring security to Israel, relieve the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza, and build a different future for the region. One year later, it’s remarkable how much has changed. The situation is far from perfect, but the progress is real, and the world is better for it. A look at the past year: ✅October 9, 2025: Hamas accepts President Trump’s 20-point peace plan, launching a ceasefire that has largely endured for a year. ✅October 12, 2025: Israeli forces complete first withdrawal to the agreed yellow line. ✅October 13, 2025: All 20 living Israeli hostages return home. Something many believed would never happen. ✅November 17, 2025: UN Security Council passes Resolution 2803, endorsing the peace plan and authorizing an international stabilization framework and the Board of Peace. ✅January 5, 2026: UN reports 100% of basic food needs being met in Gaza for the first time since 2023. ✅January 17, 2026: National Committee for the Administration of Gaza established, creating a Palestinian technocratic administration focused on restoring essential services and rebuilding Gaza. ✅January 26, 2026: Remains of the final deceased hostage returned. For the first time since 2014, no Israeli hostages, living or deceased, in Gaza. ✅February 19, 2026: The Board of Peace holds its inaugural meeting, hosted by Chairman President Trump. Landmark partnership with FIFA announced, including a $50 million commitment toward a football stadium, academy, and facilities for Gaza’s children, and billions of dollars in commitments for the people of Gaza. ✅May 2, 2026: UN reports that humanitarian aid entering Gaza had increased by 72% compared with before the ceasefire. ✅July 31, 2026: Hamas signs an actionable, step-by-step framework for decommissioning its weapons, developed with the support of Nickolay Mladenov and mediators from Egypt, Turkey, Qatar, and the United States. Implementation remains a critical next step. ✅2026: Five nations commit forces toward the International Stabilization Force, with several more working on logistics for deployment this fall. ✅September 23, 2026: Board of Peace hosts an open meeting on the sidelines of UNGA releasing the next steps in the Gaza recovery plan. A year ago, so much of this seemed impossible. First, many doubted we could reach an agreement. Then came the harder question of whether the parties would honor their commitments. Over the past year, we have seen what can be achieved when people with profound differences find ways to work together toward a common objective. Steve Witkoff @SEPeaceMissions and I are grateful to @POTUS Trump for his leadership, @VP, @SecRubio, the Board of Peace team, led by @TB, @nmladenov, @lightstonea, @AliShaathNCAG, Gen. Jasper Jeffers, Liran Tanchman, Yakir Gabay, Josh Greunbaum, Josh Halpern and many others, and our partners in Egypt, the UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Bahrain, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco and Israel. Special thanks to Sheikh Mohammed, Ali Al-Thwadi, Hakan Fidan, General Hasan, Bader Abdulhamdi, @mikeeisenberg, and @AmbDermer. I’m also grateful to the many talented people who have volunteered their time and energy because they believe that the horrors of October 7 and the suffering in Gaza must never happen again. There is still hard work ahead. Disarmament must be implemented, security established, essential services restored, and communities rebuilt. None of this will be easy. But we have a thoughtful plan, committed partners, and a path forward that did not exist a year ago. It’s worth recognizing how far we’ve come, even as we acknowledge how much remains to be done. Hopefully, the year ahead will bring even more progress, and a few more miracles.

The response to my post last week reinforced my instinct to put the facts out there, trust people to look at them fairly, and let them make up their own minds. I especially appreciated hearing from people who reconsidered things they had previously believed after seeing the facts. A recent article brought together many false claims and misperceptions about me that have accumulated and been repeated over the years. Rather than continue responding to them one at a time, I decided to address them all in one place, with supporting documents. For anyone interested in the facts: jaredkushner.com/posts/new-y… Now, back to work.

Thanks for such a thoughtful analysis. I’ve learned a lot over the years from some incredible people. Listening, understanding what people really need, and trying to find ways for everyone to win has served me well in both business and diplomacy.

CNN published a deeply misleading story and headline suggesting that my diplomatic work in the Middle East somehow benefited investments in Israeli defense companies. But CNN’s own reporting says otherwise. Buried behind a paywall, it acknowledges: “CNN found no indication that Kushner’s actions as a diplomat directly affected the investments reviewed.” Phoenix is not a defense company. It is one of Israel’s largest publicly traded financial institutions, highly regulated and managing approximately $220 billion across thousands of investments. Think of Phoenix as the Israeli equivalent of Vanguard or Fidelity. It manages the retirement savings of millions of Israelis. The savers don’t choose the individual investments, and neither do I. I have no role in deciding what Phoenix buys or sells. It has performed very well for Affinity and our investors, up more than five times since our initial investment. Affinity is an SEC-registered investment firm. Our investment in Phoenix is public and dates to before President Trump was re-elected and before I returned to public service. Affinity does not own the defense companies highlighted in CNN’s story. Those facts make for a less provocative headline, but a much more accurate story. Misleading stories will not distract me from the work President Trump asked me to do: help end wars, bring people together and pursue peace. That work is too important.

For the last 10 years, I have ignored false and misleading stories about me and focused on the work. But the cycle has gotten out of control where old lies get repeated as fact, new ones get added, and the record becomes increasingly distorted. So from time to time, I’m going to respond, not to every allegation. But when the truth matters, I’ll put the facts and supporting information out publicly, and people can judge for themselves.

Our goals are transparent: a fully demilitarized Gaza, governed responsibly by Palestinians, where people can live with dignity, opportunity, hope and peace. Much of what we presented today did not exist a year ago. Today, there is a ceasefire, the hostages are home, a Palestinian technocratic government is ready, a security and demilitarization framework has been developed, and 66 projects are ready to begin rebuilding Gaza and improving people’s lives. Grateful to our partners across the region, and to the incredible team that has worked tirelessly to transform these plans into reality. President Trump challenged us to break the old cycle and build something different. We have made real progress. Now we will move forward to the next phase.

Six years ago, President Trump launched the Abraham Accords and opened a new chapter of peace, partnership, and prosperity in the Middle East. Many said it was impossible. But with courageous leadership, persistence, and a small group of people willing to challenge old assumptions, we proved that the impossible could be achieved. For too long, the region was trapped by old ideas and failed frameworks that managed conflict rather than solved it, and too often created incentives that perpetuated division and instability. The idea behind the Abraham Accords was simple: instead of reinforcing the things that divide people, build bonds that bring them together. Increase understanding. Expand trade and investment. Deepen security cooperation. Create tangible benefits that make people’s lives better and give everyone a stake in peace. What began as a bold vision has delivered billions in trade, joint innovation, new friendships and partnerships, and a powerful alternative to the failed approaches of the past. The Middle East is once again at an inflection point. There are breakthrough opportunities today that many will say are impossible. But we have seen what can happen when leaders reject conventional thinking, focus on common interests, and have the courage to pursue a better future. The Abraham Accords showed that a different path is possible. Now we have an opportunity to build an even broader movement around cooperation, shared prosperity and security—and replace the failed ideas of the past with a new model that gives people across the region something better to believe in and build toward. We surprised the world once. With the right leadership, focus, patience and courage, I believe we can do it again.

Welcome home, Robert!

Another historic step. And more work remains.

Great conversation with @IvankaTrump and @davidsenra on one of my favorite podcasts!