Disarmament is a key part in the second phrase of the ceasefire plan sealed in October. A Palestinian technocratic committee has also been set up with a goal of taking over governance in the battered Gaza Strip…reports Asian Lite News
President Donald Trump said that Hamas would give up weapons, a step the militants have not confirmed, in what would be a major step forward in a fragile ceasefire with Israel. “A lot of people said they’ll never disarm. It looks like they’re going to disarm,” Trump told a cabinet meeting.
Trump hailed cooperation with Hamas, considered a terrorist group by the United States, after Israeli forces brought back the remains from the last hostage held in Gaza, Ran Gvili. “They did help us with those bodies, getting them back, and that family is so grateful,” Trump said.
Trump had asked for an update on the Middle East from his roving special envoy Steve Witkoff, sitting in the side of the room as cabinet members and media listened. An upbeat Witkoff voiced high confidence at Hamas following through.
“We’ve got the terrorists out of there and they’re going to demilitarize. They will because they have no choice,” Witkoff said. “They’re going to give it up. They’re going to give up the AK-47s,” he told Trump.
Hamas has said that the return of Gvili’s body showed its commitment to the ceasefire but it has so far not surrendered its weapons. The group has repeatedly said disarmament is a red line, but it has also suggested it would be open to handing over its weapons to a Palestinian governing authority.
Disarmament is a key part in the second phrase of the ceasefire plan sealed in October. A Palestinian technocratic committee has also been set up with a goal of taking over governance in the battered Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, Hamas is seeking to incorporate its 10,000 police officers into a new US-backed Palestinian administration for Gaza, sources say, a demand likely to be opposed by Israel as the militant group debates whether to surrender its arms.
Islamist group Hamas retains control of just under half of Gaza following an October ceasefire deal brokered by Trump. The agreement ties further Israeli troop withdrawals to Hamas giving up its weapons.
The 20-point plan to end the war, now in its second phase, calls for the governance of Gaza to be handed to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, a Palestinian technocratic body with US oversight that is meant to exclude Hamas. In a letter to staff, Gaza’s Hamas-run government urged its more than 40,000 civil servants and security personnel to cooperate with the NCAG but assured them it was working to incorporate them into the new government.
That would include the roughly 10,000-strong Hamas-run police force, four sources familiar with the matter said, a demand that has not been previously reported. Many of them have been patrolling Gaza as Hamas reasserts its grip in areas under its control.
It was not immediately clear whether Israel, which has adamantly rejected any Hamas involvement in Gaza’s future, would agree to the civil and security workers’ inclusion in the NCAG. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
Hamas’ plans for its police force and workers point to wide gaps between Hamas and Israel, backed by the US, as Trump pushes ahead with his plans. Last week, Trump hosted a signing ceremony to establish his “Board of Peace” that will serve as a transitional administration to set the framework and coordinate funding for the redevelopment of Gaza. The framework includes a provision barring “foreign terrorist organizations” from participating in governance.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem told Reuters the group was prepared to hand over governance to the 15-member NCAG and its chair, Ali Shaath, with immediate effect. “We (have) full confidence that it will operate on the basis of benefiting from qualified personnel and not wasting the rights of anyone who worked during the previous period,” Qassem said, referring to the inclusion of the 40,000 personnel.
