Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected US President Donald Trump’s 15-point plan for Gaza, saying Israeli forces will not withdraw from the territory until Hamas is “truly disarmed”.
“Israel rejects the 15-point document,” he said at a cabinet meeting, emphasizing that Hamas must hand over all its weapons before any retreat. With this position, he distances himself from the American president, in an attempt to consolidate his electoral base before the national elections on October 27, the first since Hamas’ action on October 7, 2023.
In late July, Trump announced a breakthrough in the U.S.-led ceasefire agreement, saying Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza had accepted a phased plan under which they would hand over their weapons to a new Palestinian governing body, and Israel would begin withdrawing its troops in parallel with disarmament.
Pressured by his right-wing base on the eve of the elections, Netanyahu confirmed his position, reiterated several times, of opposition to the plan.
American mediation
On July 30, the US-led Peace Council proposed a 15-point roadmap for Gaza, detailing a gradual, conditional framework for disarmament and reconstruction in the war-torn coastal enclave.
The plan calls for Hamas to disarm in exchange for Israel’s complete military withdrawal and the government’s transition to an independent Palestinian National Committee backed by an international security force.
The Peace Council, created by Trump in October with him serving as president for life, is led by the US government. United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2803 designates it as the body responsible for overseeing the peace plan for Gaza.
Trump stated that the agreement would be implemented in stages, with the withdrawal of Israeli forces as the disarmament process progresses.
Despite this structuring, challenges remain. Hamas conditions membership on the end of Israel’s genocidal actions.
A member of the Hamas negotiating delegation said the group’s implementation of the agreement will depend on Israel fulfilling its commitments.
However, the Peace Council stated earlier this week that the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza will only occur after the disarmament of Hamas is completed.
Occupation and massacre
Israel has killed more than 73,300 Palestinians in Gaza since its genocidal escalation began in October 2023. And since agreeing to a US-brokered “ceasefire” with Hamas in October 2025, it has continued carrying out attacks in Gaza, killing more than 1,200 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
The occupied West Bank has been the scene of almost daily violence involving Israeli troops and settlers since the war began in October 2023.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, but in recent years the number of Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory – which are illegal under international law – has increased dramatically.
Netanyahu’s arguments
The Israeli prime minister stated that 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.”
Netanyahu added that Israel was in dialogue with Washington about concerns regarding the plan.
“They have ideas; some are acceptable to us, some are not, and we know how to defend our position on these issues,” he said.
The Israeli leader, who is expected to face a difficult national election in October this year, with successive polls indicating that he is on track for defeat, said that Hamas must give up all its weapons.
The Palestinians’ reaction
According to reporter Nour Odeh, from the network Al Jazeerain the occupied West Bank, discussions around the 15-point plan, including the disarmament of Hamas and the possible withdrawal of Israel, “are extremely controversial for the right-wing government.” “It appears that Netanyahu, so close to the elections, has hit the reset button, saying none of this will happen on his watch.”
Netanyahu’s retreat is extremely problematic for the Peace Council and for the mediators who have been working for months to try to find a way to achieve the disarmament of Hamas and make Israel commit to a withdrawal from Gaza, he adds.
However, most people in the war-torn coastal enclave “expected” Israel to reject the proposal. “People’s only concern right now is that this is translating into greater uncertainty,” reported Hani Mahmoud, a reporter for Al Jazeera in Gaza.
“There are important elements that were part of the plan in terms of security: the Israeli withdrawal from the area it has occupied in recent years in Gaza, known as the ‘Yellow Line’, the disarmament of Hamas, as well as the entry of international stabilization forces. Now, the total rejection puts into serious doubt the sequence and steps for the completion of this plan. This translates into the absence of a clear end to hostilities and wars.”
Agreement to stop genocide
Political analyst and former advisor to the Palestinian negotiating team Xavier Abu Eid says the Peace Council and UN Security Council Resolution 2803 were accepted late last year because, at the time, it was argued that they were the only way to end the Israeli genocide in Gaza.
“But it was very clear from the beginning that President Trump’s 20-point plan and the 15-point disarmament and implementation plan that followed were more about serving Israeli interests than the Palestinian right to self-determination,” he said.
“Justice for the Palestinians is something that nobody talks about. So certainly that remains a position,” he said, adding that Trump is unlikely to be satisfied with Netanyahu’s rejection.
“But at the same time, Trump never even pretended to push for any kind of accountability measure against Netanyahu for violating even his own agreements,” the analyst said.
At odds with the people of Israel
Israeli analyst Dan Perry stated that Netanyahu’s decision against the proposed Gaza plan is “at odds with what the people of Israel would generally want, if they correctly understood what is happening.
“I’m not naive about Hamas. But even if there is the idea of a declaratory agreement on disarmament, that should be received very clearly,” Perry, former head of the Associated Press news agency in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, told Al Jazeera.
“I keep hearing about a trade-off between Israel’s security demands and the obvious needs of the Palestinian people, the need to alleviate and remedy the humanitarian disaster in Gaza, but these two issues are not incompatible.”
Much of Israeli society supported the genocidal war against Gaza following the October 7 attack on southern Israel, as well as the war against Lebanon and Iran.
Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli diplomat, says Netanyahu needs “an eternal war.”
“This Israeli rejection of the Gaza plan must be seen entirely in the context of the upcoming Israeli elections on October 27,” he said.
Pinkas points out that Netanyahu has made a “calculation that this presents no risks,” “that he can supposedly challenge Trump because Trump doesn’t care enough, because of the sequel, because Hamas hasn’t disarmed yet, because he can get away with it.”
“And it all comes down to endless war and elections,” he concludes.
*With information from AFP and Al Jazeera.
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
