🔗 Share this article

Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the first part of the UN-endorsed Gaza halt in hostilities plan is close to finalization, stating that the second stage must involve the disarmament of Hamas.

Upcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli premier revealed he would address the next steps in late November in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were outlined in a UN Security Council decision on 17 November.

“We are nearing complete the first phase,” Netanyahu stated. “But we have to ensure that we achieve the identical objectives in the second phase, and that’s something I anticipate reviewing with President Trump.”

European Leader Visits Netanyahu

The prime minister was speaking at a shared press conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Phase two must begin now and then stage three must also be examined.”

Merz is the initial leader of a significant European state to hold talks with Netanyahu in Israel since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued warrants for arrest for the Israeli prime minister and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in November last year for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegations in Gaza.

After securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had said he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany regardless of the ICC warrants, but noted on Sunday a trip was not at this time being considered. Netanyahu dismisses the warrants as “trumped-up allegations” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Terms of the Ongoing Truce

Under the first phase of the current ceasefire agreement, Hamas released the final 20 living Israeli captives in return for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 remains of hostages who died during the war. At the same time, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a demarcation line, resulting in them in occupation of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was put into effect on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed over 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Hamas attacks over the same timeframe.

Next Steps and Ambiguous Sequencing

Not one of Trump’s suggestions, nor UN security council resolution 2803 which mostly endorsed them, specified a timetable transitioning the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is required to disarm, Israeli troops are supposed to retreat more, and an international stabilization force is to be established under the control of a “board of peace” of world leaders led by Trump, overseeing a administrative Palestinian committee to run daily governance of Gaza.

The sequencing of these actions is unclear in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his comments on Sunday, Netanyahu focused on Hamas disarmament.

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

Possible Options 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, labeling it as a subject of “negotiation”, and reiterated that Israel was firmly against the creation of a Palestinian state, the goal of the peace process supported by most European and Arab capitals as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

ICC Warrants and Legal Proceedings

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

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “destroying the standing of the ICC” with “false allegations of deprivation and genocide” from a “compromised official”.

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

Questioned about the prospect of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz told reporters on Sunday: “There is no reason to consider this at the moment.”