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Benjamin Netanyahu has commented that the primary phase of the UN-endorsed Gaza truce framework is close to completion, and added that the subsequent stage must involve the demilitarization of Hamas.

Forthcoming Discussions in Washington

The Israeli leader said he would examine the future steps in late November in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza plans were formalized in a UN security council decision on 17 November.

“We are nearing complete the initial stage,” Netanyahu stated. “But we have to ensure that we secure the identical outcomes in the next phase, and that’s something I anticipate discussing with President Trump.”

European Leader Visits Netanyahu

The prime minister was speaking at a joint news conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Stage two must come now and then phase three must also be examined.”

Merz is the first leader of a leading European state to meet Netanyahu in Israel since the International Criminal Court (ICC) released warrants for arrest for the Israeli prime minister and his ex- 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 said he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany despite the ICC warrants, but clarified on Sunday a trip was not presently planned. Netanyahu rejects the warrants as “trumped-up charges” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Details of the Ongoing Truce

Under the initial stage of the present ceasefire deal, Hamas released the last 20 living Israeli hostages in return for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has handed over all but one of 28 bodies of hostages who died during the war. At the same time, Israeli forces have pulled back to a truce line, leaving them in occupation of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Following the ceasefire was put into effect on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed more than 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Hamas attacks over the same period.

Next Steps and Unclear Timeline

Neither Trump’s suggestions, nor UN security council resolution 2803 which mostly endorsed them, set out a schedule transitioning the ceasefire into a permanent peace. Hamas is expected to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to pull back further, and an international stabilization force is to be established under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders led by Trump, supervising a administrative Palestinian council to run day-to-day administration of Gaza.

The timeline of these steps is unclear in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his statements on Sunday, Netanyahu stressed Hamas disarmament.

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

Possible Alternatives and Political Positions

Netanyahu mentioned the prospects of “alternatives” to the ISF, without explaining what those might be. He would not dismiss Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, labeling it as a subject of “discussion”, and reiterated that Israel was strongly against the creation of a Palestinian state, the aim of the peace process supported by most European and Arab governments as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

International Criminal Court Charges and Judicial Proceedings

Netanyahu said the primary reason he would not be able to make a return visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as manufactured by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a way of shifting focus from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any wrongdoing, but stepped aside from his role in May pending the conclusion of an inquiry.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “harming the reputation of the ICC” with “trumped-up charges of deprivation and genocide” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

A separate tribunal, the international court of justice, is weighing up charges that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN autonomous commission of inquiry determined that Israel had committed genocide.

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