Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel did not agree to the plan to disarm Hamas put forward by the US-backed Board of Peace, in his first public comments on the matter, which could put him on a collision course with President Donald Trump.
In a video in Hebrew posted on his Facebook page on Tuesday evening, Mr Netanyahu said that Israel will not withdraw from its current positions in Gaza “until Hamas is completely disarmed”. Israel still occupies most of the enclave, despite a ceasefire last October.
The video comes after days of anonymous Israeli officials telling media outlets that Israel rejected the deal, which was negotiated over months between Hamas, the Board of Peace and mediator countries. Israel was not a part of those talks.
“President Trump thinks, or his team thinks, that they can get Hamas to disarm and demilitarise Gaza. We are looking into it. They sent us a draft. We did not agree to it,” Mr Netanyahu said.
The video came after Mr Netanyahu met top Board of Peace diplomat Nickolay Mladenov in Jerusalem on Monday. Mr Mladenov said the meetings made for a “long day”, in a post on X.
“This is the start of the hard phase, and I have never pretended otherwise. Not much of what we do now is dramatic. It is slow, grinding and technical work,” he added.
Mr Mladenov’s comments came the day after he criticised major Israeli strikes at the weekend, although he did not name Israel.
Mr Netanyahu’s position goes against the disarmament plan, which states that Israel should pull back from areas it occupies in the enclave as Hamas starts to give up weapons. Mr Netanyahu now says Israel will not withdraw until Hamas has given up all of its weapons.
Israel’s latest opposition adds yet another complication to the negotiations, as many in the ultranationalist government continue to refuse any withdrawal, and support the establishment of Israeli settlements inside Gaza.
Hamas fears losing influence in talks and its purpose as a militant organisation if it gives up weapons without securing sufficient wins.
Despite Mr Netanyahu’s rejection of the deal, Israeli media reported on Tuesday evening that the military was ordered to curtail strikes on Gaza. Forces are now only allowed to kill “immediate threats, while any additional targeted killings require the approval of the [military] chief of staff”, reported I24 News.
