NewzAfter more than a week of gradually escalating criticism of the plan, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu explicitly opposed it as he faced pushback from his right-wing base ahead of elections Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Sunday a Gaza plan backed by Donald Trump, saying Israel would not withdraw its forces until Hamas is 'genuinely' disarmed. President Trump hailed the peace plan as a "historic agreement for the complete disarmament of Hamas and all other groups in Gaza."
plan to move towards the next stage of peace in Gaza, demanding the full disarmament of Hamas before any Israeli forces withdraw President Trump’s Board of Peace announced an agreement last month that aimed at Hamas giving up its weapons alongside an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Israel has rejected the latest US plan to move towards the next stage of peace in Gaza, demanding the full disarmament of Hamas before any Israeli forces withdraw.
“Israel rejects the 15-point document,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the beginning of a cabinet meeting Sunday. He said the Israeli military would “not withdraw at all until Hamas is genuinely disarmed and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and citizens.” “And when I say disarm Hamas, that means heavy weapons, less-heavy weapons, all weapons. And we are talking about real disarmament, not a fictitious disarmament,” Netanyahu said.
“We are now discussing this with the Americans. They have ideas, some of which are acceptable to us and some are not, and we know how to stand up to those things.” “As long as I am prime minister, no Palestinian state will be established — not in Gaza and not in the West Bank,” Netanyahu said. At the end of July, US President Donald Trump announced what he described as a historic agreement to secure the disarmament of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza, months after the president first announced a US-brokered ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel.
Hamas said it would only go through with the deal if Israel halts strikes in Gaza and pulls troops back to the “yellow line,” as defined by the October ceasefire agreement. Israeli forces currently occupy more than half of Gaza, in the east and south of the territory. The post Israel rejects Trump’s Gaza peace plan, saying no withdrawal until Hamas disarms appeared first on Egypt Independent.
Israel's PM says its military will not pull-out from Gaza until Hamas is "genuinely" disarmed. Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was speaking with the US about its objections to the Gaza plan. (EPA Images pic) JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rejected a Gaza plan hailed by US President Donald Trump, vowing no military pullout until Hamas is "genuinely" disarmed.After more than a week of gradually escalating criticism of the plan, Netanyahu explicitly opposed it as he faced pushback from his right-wing base ahead of elections."Israel rejects the 15-point document," Netanyahu said, referring to a plan endorsed in late July by Hamas.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 at a cabinet meeting.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.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.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.Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader, who according to polls is in a tight race to stay in power, has faced calls from his far-right allies to hold a new cabinet vote and end the Gaza plan.Netanyahu said that Israel was speaking with the United States about its objections."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.Netanyahu said that Hamas must give up all of its weapons, a goal that Board of Peace members say is not realistically achievable."We are talking about real disarmament, not fictitious disarmament," Netanyahu said.
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