Initial Phase of Gaza Truce Plan Almost Complete, Says Netanyahu

Benjamin Netanyahu has proclaimed that the first segment of the internationally-supported Gaza truce agreement is nearing conclusion, adding that the subsequent stage must entail the demilitarization of Hamas.

Upcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli prime minister said he would talk about the following stages later this month in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza plans were outlined in a UN security council resolution on 17 November.

“We are nearing complete the initial phase,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to guarantee that we achieve the same results in the second phase, and that’s something I anticipate addressing with President Trump.”

German Chancellor Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was speaking at a joint media briefing with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who commented: “Stage two must begin now and then stage three must also be considered.”

Merz is the initial leader of a significant European state to meet Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court delivered arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in November last year for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

After securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had said he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany notwithstanding the ICC warrants, but said on Sunday a trip was not presently being considered. Netanyahu disregards the warrants as “baseless charges” from a “biased prosecutor”.

Details of the Current Ceasefire

During the initial stage of the present ceasefire agreement, Hamas freed the final 20 living Israeli captives in return for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has handed over all but one of 28 remains of hostages killed during the war. Meanwhile, Israeli forces have pulled back to a demarcation line, resulting in them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Following the ceasefire was declared on 10 October, Israeli forces have been responsible for the deaths of over 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas military actions over the identical timeframe.

Next Steps and Ambiguous Sequencing

Not one of Trump’s suggestions, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which largely endorsed them, specified a schedule transitioning the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is expected to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to pull back further, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the authority of a “peace board” of world leaders headed by Trump, supervising a technocratic Palestinian committee to run day-to-day governance of Gaza.

The sequencing of these measures is ambiguous in Trump’s proposals or in resolution 2803. In his remarks on Sunday, Netanyahu focused 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 undertook to disarm and have Gaza demilitarized,” he stated.

Possible Alternatives and Political Positions

Netanyahu raised the prospects of “other options” to the ISF, without explaining what those might be. He would not dismiss Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, describing it as a subject of “debate”, and stressed that Israel was strongly opposed the establishment of a Palestinian state, the objective of the peace process desired by most European and Arab governments as well as the vast majority of UN member states.

International Criminal Court Warrants and Legal Proceedings

Netanyahu said the reason he would not be able to make a reciprocal visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he characterized as manufactured by the court’s top prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a means of shifting focus from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any wrongdoing, but stepped aside from his role in May pending the conclusion of an investigation.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “destroying the reputation of the ICC” with “trumped-up charges of deprivation and acts of genocide” from a “compromised prosecutor”.

A separate tribunal, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), 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 possibility of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz informed reporters on Sunday: “There is little cause to discuss this at the present time.”