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Benjamin Netanyahu has indicated that the primary segment of the internationally-supported Gaza truce framework is nearing finalization, noting that the next phase must entail the disarmament of Hamas.

Forthcoming Discussions in Washington

The Israeli prime minister revealed he would talk about the subsequent actions in late November in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza proposals were outlined in a UN security council decision on 17 November.

“We are close to finish the first phase,” Netanyahu said. “But we have to ensure that we attain the equivalent results in the second stage, and that’s something I am eager to reviewing with President Trump.”

European Leader Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was addressing the media at a joint news conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who said: “Stage two must start immediately and then the third phase must also be considered.”

Merz is the first leader of a major European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court issued warrants for arrest for the Israeli prime minister and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in November last year for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

After winning federal elections in February, Merz had stated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany regardless of the ICC warrants, but noted on Sunday a visit was not currently planned. Netanyahu dismisses the warrants as “fabricated allegations” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Details of the Current Truce

Under the first phase of the existing ceasefire agreement, Hamas released the final 20 living Israeli captives in return for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and it has handed over all but one of 28 remains of hostages killed during the war. At the same time, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a ceasefire line, resulting in them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Following the ceasefire was announced on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed more than 360 Palestinians, including an estimated 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas military actions over the same timeframe.

Future Stages and Unclear Sequencing

Not one of Trump’s suggestions, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which mostly supported them, detailed a schedule transitioning the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to withdraw farther, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the control of a “peace board” of world leaders led by Trump, overseeing a technocratic Palestinian council to run day-to-day administration of Gaza.

The sequencing of these actions is ambiguous in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his remarks on Sunday, Netanyahu focused on Hamas disarmament.

“I think it’s vital to ensure that Hamas adheres not only with the ceasefire, but also with their obligation which they agreed to to disarm and have Gaza demilitarized,” he said.

Potential Options and Political Stances

Netanyahu mentioned the prospects of “other options” to the ISF, without elaborating on what those might be. He would not exclude Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, labeling it as a topic of “discussion”, and reiterated that Israel was strongly opposed the establishment of a Palestinian state, the aim of the peace process desired by most European and Arab governments as well as the vast majority of UN member states.

International Criminal Court Charges and Judicial Cases

Netanyahu claimed the primary reason he would not be able make a return visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as invented by the court’s top prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a means of shifting focus from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any misconduct, but stepped aside from his role in May pending the outcome of an inquiry.

Netanyahu remarked Khan was “destroying the credibility of the ICC” with “false allegations of starvation and acts of genocide” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Another court, the international court of justice, is reviewing charges that Israel has perpetrated genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN independent commission of inquiry concluded that Israel had carried out genocide.

Asked about the possibility of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz informed reporters on Sunday: “There is little cause to consider this at the moment.”