Israel Rejects Trump's 15-Point Gaza Plan Over Hamas Disarmament
In the midst of heightened Israel tensions, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that Israel rejects the 15-point Gaza plan proposed by the US-led Board of Peace, stating that Israeli forces will not withdraw from the territory until Hamas is genuinely disarmed. [1] Netanyahu made the rejection during an Israeli cabinet meeting on 9 August. [1]
Netanyahu's Rejection of the 15-Point Plan
Israel has rejected US President Donald Trump’s 15-point plan for Gaza, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying Israeli forces will remain occupying the territory until Hamas gives up its weapons. [1] Netanyahu announced the decision during an Israeli cabinet meeting on Sunday, 9 August, placing Israel at odds with a roadmap promoted by the US-led Board of Peace. [1] Israel is rejecting a 15-point Gaza proposal put forward by the Board of Peace, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, declaring that Israeli forces will not withdraw from the enclave until Hamas fully gives up its weapons. [2] “Israel rejects the 15-point Gaza document proposed by the Board of Peace,” Netanyahu said at Sunday's Cabinet meeting. [2] The Israeli army “will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and our citizens”, he added. [3] Israel has rejected US President Donald Trump's 15-point plan for Gaza and will not withdraw until Hamas fully disarms, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday. [3]
Details of the Disarmament Demand
Israel remains in discussions with the United States over the disarmament of Hamas but insisted any agreement would have to result in the terror group surrendering its entire arsenal, according to Netanyahu. [2] “It needs to be genuine disarmament, not fictitious disarmament,” Netanyahu said. [2] “When I say Hamas is disarmed, that means the heavy weapons, the less heavy weapons, all the weapons,” he added. [2] Netanyahu indicated Israel would continue working with Washington but said the government would hold firm on its security demands, particularly its insistence that Hamas be fully stripped of its weapons before Israeli troops leave their positions in Gaza. [2] Netanyahu said that Israel was speaking with the United States about its objections. [5] “They have ideas; some of them are acceptable to us and some are not, and we know how to stand our ground on these matters,” he said. [5] Netanyahu said that Hamas must give up all of its weapons, a goal that Board of Peace members say is not realistically achievable. [5] “We are talking about real disarmament, not fictitious disarmament,” Netanyahu said. [5]
Hamas Response and Commitment to Roadmap
Hamas remains committed to a Gaza roadmap agreed with mediators and representatives of the Board of Peace in Cairo 10 days ago, senior Hamas official Basem Naim told Reuters. [2] Hamas expects mediators and the United States to “press Netanyahu and his government to adhere to the roadmap,” he added. [2] Hamas remains committed to the Gaza roadmap agreed with mediators and the Board of Peace in Cairo 10 days earlier and expects mediators and the US to press Netanyahu to adhere to it. [2]
Opposition to Palestinian Statehood
He also reiterated his opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state in either Gaza or the West Bank. [2] “As long as I am prime minister, there will be no Palestinian state, not in Gaza and not in Judea and Samaria,” Netanyahu said. [2] “Neither ‘Fatahstan’ nor ‘Hamastan.’” [2]
Context of Ceasefire and Ongoing Tensions
The document, the latest stage in a US-led ceasefire announced in October that has reduced but not ended Israeli operations in Gaza, said Hamas would surrender weapons to a nascent Palestinian governing body. [5] The plan said Israel would begin pulling out forces in tandem with the disarmament, an idea adamantly rejected by Israel, which also wants Hamas to destroy its weapons. [5] After meeting Netanyahu last week, Trump’s body implementing the deal, dubbed the Board of Peace, backtracked and said Israel would only need to withdraw after “complete” disarmament. [5] Israel has continued carrying out strikes in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect last October, while the future disarmament of Hamas and the withdrawal of Israeli forces remain central issues in negotiations over the territory. [2] Israel has continued to carry out near-daily strikes on Gaza since agreeing to the ceasefire last October. [3] The Israeli leader’s rejection of the 15-point proposal underscores the hurdles facing efforts to turn the ceasefire into a lasting settlement, particularly over the sequence of Hamas’ disarmament and an Israeli military withdrawal. [2]
Netanyahu's Regional Remarks
Netanyahu also used his remarks Sunday to address Israeli operations elsewhere in the region, saying the military had recently acted “forcefully” in Lebanon and carried out what he described as “very important activity.” [2] On Iran, Netanyahu said Tehran has refrained from striking Israel because “it knows what a powerful blow we will deal it if it does,” while praising Trump and the U.S.-Israel alliance over efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. [2] “I greatly appreciate President Trump,” Netanyahu said. [2] “He is the greatest of our friends in the White House. I greatly appreciate the historical partnership with the U.S. against Iran's attempts to acquire nuclear weapons.” [2] “And I wish to emphasize once again: With or without an agreement, as long as I am Prime Minister, Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. Because the existence of our precious country, the country of all of us, the existence of Israel, is not up for negotiation.” [2]
What to watch next: The sequence of Hamas disarmament and Israeli military withdrawal remains unresolved as Israel continues strikes in Gaza since the October ceasefire.
