Initial Stage of Gaza Ceasefire Plan Nearly Finished, States Netanyahu

Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the primary phase of the internationally-supported Gaza truce agreement is nearing completion, stating that the next phase must involve the disarmament of Hamas.

Upcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli premier revealed he would examine the following stages in late November in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were formalized in a UN security council resolution on 17 November.

“We’re about to conclude the first phase,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to ensure that we secure the same outcomes in the second stage, and that’s something I look forward to addressing with President Trump.”

European Leader Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was speaking at a joint press conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Stage two must begin now and then phase three must also be taken into account.”

Merz is the initial head of state of a significant European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court issued arrest warrants 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 securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had stated he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany notwithstanding the ICC warrants, but clarified on Sunday a trip was not presently under consideration. Netanyahu rejects the warrants as “trumped-up allegations” from a “biased prosecuting office”.

Terms of the Ongoing Ceasefire

During the first phase of the current ceasefire deal, Hamas released the remaining 20 living Israeli hostages in return for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and it has handed over all but one of 28 bodies of hostages who died during the war. Meanwhile, Israeli forces have pulled back to a truce 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 killed in Hamas military actions over the identical timeframe.

Future Stages and Unclear Timeline

Not one of Trump’s proposals, nor UN security council resolution 2803 which mostly supported them, specified a schedule transitioning the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is expected to disarm, Israeli troops are supposed to pull back further, and an international stabilization force is to be created under the control of a “board of peace” of world leaders headed by Trump, overseeing a technocratic Palestinian council to run daily governance of Gaza.

The sequencing of these measures is ambiguous in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his comments on Sunday, Netanyahu stressed Hamas disarmament.

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

Possible Alternatives and Diplomatic Stances

Netanyahu brought up the prospects of “other options” to the ISF, without clarifying what those might be. He would not exclude Israeli annexation of the West Bank, describing it as a subject of “discussion”, and reiterated that Israel was firmly 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 Warrants and Judicial Cases

Netanyahu claimed the primary reason he would not be able 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 diverting attention from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any wrongdoing, but stepped aside from his role in May pending the conclusion of an inquiry.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “harming the reputation of the ICC” with “trumped-up charges of starvation and genocide” from a “corrupt official”.

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

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