Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, rejected the latest U.S. plan to move towards a next phase of peace in Gaza and demanded the total disarmament of Hamas before the withdrawal of Israeli forces.
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“Israel rejects the 15-point document”, Netanyahu declared at the start of a cabinet meeting this Sunday.
The Prime Minister stated that the Israeli Army “will not withdraw at all until Hamas is truly disarmed and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and citizens.”
Netanyahu also clarified what he means by the group’s disarmament: “And when I say disarm Hamas, I mean heavy weapons, light weapons, all weapons. And we are talking about real disarmament, not fictitious disarmament,” he said.
“We are discussing this with the Americans. They have ideas, some acceptable to us and others not, and we know how to oppose them,” he added.
The Israeli leader also reiterated his opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state. “As long as I am prime minister, no Palestinian state will be established, neither in Gaza nor in the West Bank,” he affirmed.
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At the end of July, U.S. President Donald Trump announced what he described as a historic agreement aimed at ensuring the disarmament of Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza.
The announcement came months after Trump first communicated a U.S.-mediated ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.
Hamas, meanwhile, stated it would only proceed with the agreement if Israel stops attacks in Gaza and withdraws its troops to the so-called “yellow line”, as defined in the October ceasefire agreement.
Currently, Israeli forces occupy more than half of Gaza, both in the east and south of the territory.
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