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Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that the opening part of the UN-endorsed Gaza truce proposal is approaching completion, stating that the second phase must require the demilitarization of Hamas.

Forthcoming Discussions in Washington

The Israeli leader stated he would talk about the subsequent actions in late November in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were codified in a UN security council resolution on 17 November.

“We are close to complete the first phase,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to ensure that we attain the same objectives in the next stage, and that’s something I am eager to addressing with President Trump.”

European Chancellor Visits Netanyahu

The prime minister was addressing the media at a shared press conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Phase two must come now and then stage three must also be examined.”

Merz is the first head of state of a significant European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court delivered arrest warrants 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 securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had indicated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany notwithstanding the ICC warrants, but clarified on Sunday a trip was not at this time under consideration. Netanyahu disregards the warrants as “trumped-up allegations” from a “corrupt prosecuting office”.

Terms of the Ongoing Ceasefire

During the initial stage of the present ceasefire agreement, Hamas released the last 20 surviving Israeli hostages in return for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 bodies of hostages killed during the war. Meanwhile, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a ceasefire line, resulting in them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was announced on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed over 360 Palestinians, including an estimated 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Hamas military actions over the identical timeframe.

Next Steps and Unclear Timeline

Not one of Trump’s proposals, nor UN security council resolution 2803 which largely endorsed them, set out a timetable extending the ceasefire into a permanent peace. Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to withdraw farther, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be created under the control of a “peace board” of world leaders led by Trump, supervising a technocratic Palestinian committee to run day-to-day governance of Gaza.

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

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

Possible Alternatives and Political Stances

Netanyahu mentioned the possibility of “alternatives” to the ISF, without clarifying what those might be. He would not dismiss Israeli annexation of the West Bank, labeling it as a topic of “negotiation”, and reiterated that Israel was strongly opposed the creation of a Palestinian state, the aim of the peace process desired by most European and Arab capitals as well as the vast majority of UN member states.

International Criminal Court Charges and Judicial Proceedings

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 manufactured by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a means of shifting focus from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any wrongdoing, but stepped aside from his role in May pending the conclusion of an inquiry.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “destroying the standing of the ICC” with “trumped-up charges of starvation and acts of genocide” from a “compromised prosecutor”.

A separate tribunal, the international court of justice, is considering charges that Israel has perpetrated genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN autonomous commission of inquiry determined that Israel had carried out genocide.

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