🔗 Share this article

Benjamin Netanyahu has noted that the initial part of the internationally-supported Gaza ceasefire plan is close to conclusion, and added that the second phase must include the demilitarization of Hamas.

Forthcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli premier mentioned he would examine the subsequent actions later this month in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza plans were codified in a UN Security Council resolution on 17 November.

“We’re about to finish the initial phase,” Netanyahu said. “But we have to guarantee that we secure the equivalent results in the next phase, and that’s something I anticipate reviewing with President Trump.”

German Leader Meets with Netanyahu

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

Merz is the first head of state of a leading European state to hold talks with 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 allegations in Gaza.

After securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had stated he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany despite the ICC warrants, but clarified on Sunday a visit was not at this time under consideration. Netanyahu rejects the warrants as “fabricated charges” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Terms of the Current Truce

During the initial stage of the existing ceasefire agreement, Hamas freed the last 20 surviving Israeli captives in exchange for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 bodies of hostages who died during the war. Meanwhile, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a demarcation line, resulting in them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was put into effect on 10 October, Israeli forces have been responsible for the deaths of more than 360 Palestinians, including an estimated 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas attacks over the identical period.

Future Stages and Ambiguous Sequencing

Neither Trump’s suggestions, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which largely supported them, detailed a timetable extending the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is required to disarm, Israeli troops are meant to pull back further, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be created under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders led by Trump, supervising a technocratic Palestinian council to run daily administration of Gaza.

The order of these steps is not clear in Trump’s proposals or in resolution 2803. In his remarks on Sunday, Netanyahu focused on Hamas disarmament.

“I think it’s crucial to ensure that Hamas abides not only with the ceasefire, but also with their commitment which they agreed to to disarm and have Gaza demilitarise,” he stated.

Possible Alternatives and Political Stances

Netanyahu mentioned the prospects of “alternatives” to the ISF, without explaining what those might be. He would not exclude Israeli annexation of the West Bank, labeling it as a topic of “negotiation”, and emphasized that Israel was adamantly against the establishment of a Palestinian state, the objective of the peace process desired by most European and Arab governments as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

International Criminal Court Charges and Legal Proceedings

Netanyahu stated the primary 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 diverting attention from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any wrongdoing, but recused himself from his role in May pending the outcome of an investigation.

Netanyahu remarked Khan was “destroying the credibility of the ICC” with “unfounded allegations of starvation and acts of genocide” from a “compromised official”.

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

Asked about the possibility of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz told reporters on Sunday: “There is little cause to discuss this at the current juncture.”