🔗 Share this article

Benjamin Netanyahu has noted that the primary stage of the UN-endorsed Gaza ceasefire agreement is approaching completion, adding that the next phase must require the demilitarization of Hamas.

Upcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli premier said he would discuss the next steps in the coming weeks in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were outlined in a UN Security Council resolution on 17 November.

“We are nearing complete the first stage,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to make sure that we attain the equivalent results in the next phase, and that’s something I am eager to addressing with President Trump.”

European Leader Visits Netanyahu

The prime minister was addressing the media at a shared press conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who said: “Stage two must come now and then the third phase must also be examined.”

Merz is the initial head of state of a significant European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court issued warrants for arrest for the Israeli prime minister and his ex- defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in November last year for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

After winning federal elections in February, Merz had stated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany despite the ICC warrants, but noted on Sunday a visit was not currently under consideration. Netanyahu rejects the warrants as “fabricated allegations” from a “biased prosecuting office”.

Terms of the Current Truce

During the first phase of the present ceasefire deal, Hamas released the final 20 living Israeli hostages in return for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 bodies of hostages who died during the war. At the same time, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a ceasefire line, leaving them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was announced on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed more than 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas military actions over the identical period.

Next Steps and Unclear Sequencing

Neither Trump’s proposals, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which mostly endorsed them, specified a timetable extending the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is required to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to withdraw farther, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders chaired by Trump, overseeing a administrative Palestinian council to run day-to-day administration of Gaza.

The timeline of these actions is vague in Trump’s proposals or in resolution 2803. In his statements on Sunday, Netanyahu put his emphasis on Hamas disarmament.

“I think it’s important to ensure that Hamas adheres not only with the ceasefire, but also with their pledge which they agreed to to disarm and have Gaza demilitarise,” he asserted.

Possible Options and Political Stances

Netanyahu raised the possibility of “alternatives” to the ISF, without explaining what those might be. He would not rule out Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, labeling it as a topic of “discussion”, and emphasized that Israel was strongly against the creation of a Palestinian state, the aim of the peace process desired by most European and Arab capitals as well as the vast majority of UN member states.

ICC Charges and Legal Proceedings

Netanyahu stated the primary reason he would not be able to make a return visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as invented by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a means of shifting focus from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any misconduct, but recused himself from his role in May awaiting the outcome of an inquiry.

Netanyahu remarked Khan was “harming the credibility of the ICC” with “false allegations of deprivation and genocide” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Another court, the international court of justice, is weighing up allegations that Israel has perpetrated genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN independent investigative commission found that Israel had committed genocide.

Questioned about the prospect of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz told reporters on Sunday: “There is little cause to consider this at the present time.”