Israel Casts Doubt on Trump’s Hamas Disarmament Plan as Gaza Strikes Intensify
The Israeli prime minister’s office publicly distanced itself from the U.S.-backed proposal, citing deep concerns that Hamas cannot be trusted to surrender its weapons, while a deadly weekend of attacks left at least 19 Palestinians dead.
JERUSALEM — Just days after President Donald Trump touted a breakthrough agreement to disarm Hamas in Gaza, Israel has publicly pushed back, raising pointed questions about the deal’s viability and signaling that significant gaps remain between the two allies.
In its first clear public response to the proposal, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Monday that Israel has “conveyed its comments and concerns” to the United States about the proposed framework. The statement made clear that the version of the deal that has been made public does not reflect Israel’s position.
The comments come as the Gaza Strip endured another bloody weekend. At least 19 people were killed in Israeli attacks on Sunday, according to the local health ministry, which also reported 35 injuries in the past 24 hours. The Israeli military said the strikes targeted Hamas militants and infrastructure, including five weapons storage facilities dismantled on Saturday.
A Deal Met With Skepticism
Trump announced the disarmament proposal last week, describing it as an “understanding” with Israel that he said left the Israelis “very happy.” The agreement raised cautious hopes of progress in advancing the peace settlement secured by the U.S. last year.
But regional observers have been skeptical from the start, noting that any deal was unlikely to yield immediate change in Gaza, with many hurdles remaining and both sides appearing in no rush to accede to the agreement — or even sign on to it officially.
Now, Israel’s public distancing has thrown the proposal into even sharper doubt.
The Core Disagreement
At the heart of Israel’s concerns is the question of enforcement. Netanyahu’s spokesperson, Doron Spielman, said the “indispensable first step” toward any lasting arrangement is the “genuine, verifiable, and irreversible demilitarization of Hamas.”
That, Spielman explained, means the militants physically surrendering their weapons — not merely agreeing to disarm on paper.
The distinction is critical. Hamas has indicated that while it agreed to disarm, it did so conditionally — on Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and a complete cessation of “all forms of aggression.” For Israel, that’s unacceptable. The military has spent months pounding the enclave in response to the October 7, 2023 attacks, which killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and saw 251 others taken hostage.
“Over the past eight months, according to Israeli intelligence, Hamas has used the ceasefire to rearm, recruit thousands of additional terrorists, rebuild its military infrastructure, and prepare for further October 7-style massacres,” Spielman said.
That assessment underscores Israel’s fundamental distrust of any agreement that relies on Hamas’ good faith.
A Deadly Weekend Underscores the Stakes
Even as diplomats discussed the disarmament framework, violence continued to escalate. The Palestinian health ministry said Monday that the death toll was rising “every hour” due to ongoing Israeli attacks, including strikes on homes and vehicles.
Dr. Muneer al-Bursh, Director of the Ministry of Health in Gaza, told NBC News that “hospitals are suffering from the pressure of these continuous attacks amidst a severe shortage of medical supplies.”
The Israeli military said it eliminated Hamas or Hamas-aligned militants in recent days, including a Hamas commander it said had infiltrated an Israeli kibbutz on October 7.
Nickolay Mladenov, the director-general of Trump’s Board of Peace overseeing the peace process, acknowledged the toll, saying in a post on X that the two days of strikes across Gaza “have killed civilians and destroyed medical supplies that people depend on.”
Mladenov said the strikes came after “intense efforts” by the Board of Peace and regional mediators to bring Palestinian factions to agree to a roadmap on the full implementation of Trump’s plan. “Achieving a lasting peace is hard but achievable if everyone make their best efforts,” he added.
What’s at Stake
The disagreement over the disarmament framework highlights the broader challenge facing the Trump administration as it tries to broker a lasting peace in Gaza.
On one side, Israel demands a verifiable surrender of Hamas’ military capabilities before it will consider withdrawing from the territory or ending military operations. On the other, Hamas insists that disarmament must be contingent on Israel’s full withdrawal and an end to all aggression.
The gap between those positions is vast — and the weekend’s violence suggests that neither side is prepared to blink.
More than 73,300 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its military offensive after the October 7 attack. The humanitarian toll is staggering, and the pressure on the Biden — and now Trump — administration to find a resolution has been relentless.
An Uncertain Path Forward
For now, the disarmament deal remains a framework rather than a signed agreement. Israel has made its concerns clear. Hamas has laid out its conditions. And the violence continues.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Israeli concerns. But the public airing of disagreements between Washington and Jerusalem suggests that the path to peace in Gaza remains as treacherous as ever.
What happens next depends on whether the parties can bridge the gap between Israel’s demand for verifiable disarmament and Hamas’ insistence on withdrawal and an end to aggression. The weekend’s bloodshed is a stark reminder of the human cost of failure — and the fragility of any agreement that does not address the fundamental distrust on both sides.
