Benjamin Netanyahu rejects US-backed Gaza plan

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a US-backed 15-point Gaza plan at a cabinet meeting on Sunday, saying Israel would not withdraw forces from Gaza until Hamas is “genuinely” disarmed.

“Israel rejects the 15-point document,” Netanyahu said. The plan was endorsed in late July by Hamas and hailed by US President Donald Trump.

The Israeli military “will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and our citizens,” Netanyahu said. He said Israel was discussing its objections with the United States: “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.”

The document was described as the latest stage in a US-led ceasefire announced in October that has reduced but not ended Israeli operations in Gaza. It said Hamas would surrender weapons to a nascent Palestinian governing body and Israel would begin pulling out forces in tandem with the disarmament.

Israel rejected the idea of withdrawing in tandem with disarmament and wants Hamas to destroy its weapons. Netanyahu said Hamas must give up all of its weapons, adding: “We are talking about real disarmament, not fictitious disarmament.”

The Guardian also reported that Hamas official Bassem Naim said the United States must pressure Israel to accept the next phase of the Gaza plan. At the same cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said: “I want to emphasise once again: with an agreement or without an agreement, as long as I am prime minister, Iran will not have nuclear weapons.”