Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump (File photo)

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump (File photo)

He stressed that the Israeli military would not withdraw from Gaza — where Tel Aviv currently controls more than 60% of the territory — until Hamas lays down its weapons. His remarks came days after Hamas announced that it would begin disarming as part of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement reached nine months ago to end the nearly three-year-long conflict.

Israel has conveyed “serious security concerns” to the White House over the proposed disarmament deal with Hamas, an Israeli official said, in some of the first public comments from Israel since US President Donald Trump announced the agreement. A spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, Hamas remained “committed” to rebuilding its military rather than genuinely disarming, according to Doror Spielman. The development represents a potential breakthrough in efforts to end the war, although significant hurdles, conditions and lengthy timelines remain.

Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan requires Hamas to surrender its weapons and dismantle its tunnel network. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces pressure from far-right coalition partners to maintain military operations and keep troops in Gaza, while opponents blame his government for failing to prevent the October 7, 2023, attack. Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 others in the attack. Israel’s subsequent military campaign has killed more than 73,000 people, according to the Gaza health ministry.

It also envisions an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a new technocratic Palestinian government, an international security force and the reconstruction of the devastated enclave. Under the agreement, weapons held by Hamas-run police would be transferred to the US-backed National Committee for the Administration of Gaza once it enters the enclave. The timing remains unclear, as it depends on other steps. Decommissioning and storing heavy weapons, along with dismantling military production sites and tunnels, would begin after the committee and international forces arrive and would coincide with a phased withdrawal. However, a significant withdrawal appears unlikely before Israel’s October elections.