Hamas ties weapons handover to Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel rejects a U.S.-backed 15-point plan for the gradual disarmament of Gaza and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the territory. “I want to be clear here — Israel is ruling out the 15-point plan,” Netanyahu said in a cabinet meeting, according to a readout from his office.
President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace created the plan last month. Netanyahu said he has told the Trump administration about his concerns, and he said the Israeli military “will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and our citizens.”
“We are now discussing this with the Americans,” Netanyahu said. “They have ideas, some of which are acceptable to us and some are not, and we know how to stand up to those things.”
Netanyahu also reiterated his opposition to a two-state solution. “As long as I am prime minister, no Palestinian state will be established — not in Gaza and not in the West Bank,” he said.
The rejection comes as Netanyahu and his coalition face a re-election vote in late October. “Contrary to all those who preach to us, we do what must be done for Israel’s security and we can and will stand our ground even against our best friends when necessary,” Netanyahu said.
Hamas has said that handing over its heavy weapons was contingent on Israel ending “all forms of aggression” and withdrawing from Gaza. Bassem Naim, a member of Hamas’ politburo, said Sunday on X: “We expect the mediators and the American guarantor to pressure Netanyahu and his government to adhere to the roadmap and not obstruct the process for internal political and electoral reasons.”
Since the cease-fire last October, Israel has continued to strike Gaza. Israel’s military occupies more than half of Gaza, and Netanyahu’s far-right allies, who have implied they want to expand that control, lauded his comments. “The [Israeli military] cannot retreat one millimeter in the Gaza Strip,” Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said.