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Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that the first stage of the United Nations-backed Gaza truce agreement is approaching completion, and added that the second phase must involve the demilitarization of Hamas.

Upcoming Discussions in Washington

The Israeli prime minister stated he would examine the subsequent actions in the coming weeks in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza plans were outlined in a UN Security Council decision on 17 November.

“We are nearing finish the first phase,” Netanyahu stated. “But we have to make sure that we attain the same results in the next phase, and that’s something I look forward to discussing with President Trump.”

European Chancellor Visits Netanyahu

The prime minister was addressing the media at a shared media briefing with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Stage two must come now and then stage three must also be taken into account.”

Merz is the initial leader of a leading European state to meet 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 alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity allegations in Gaza.

After winning federal elections in February, Merz had stated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany despite the ICC warrants, but said on Sunday a visit was not currently planned. Netanyahu dismisses the warrants as “trumped-up charges” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Terms of the Current Truce

Under the first phase of the present ceasefire deal, Hamas released the remaining 20 surviving Israeli hostages in exchange 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. Concurrently, Israeli forces have pulled back to a truce line, resulting in them in occupation 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 attacks over the same timeframe.

Future Stages and Ambiguous Sequencing

Neither Trump’s suggestions, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which mostly supported them, set out a timetable extending the ceasefire into a permanent peace. Hamas is required to disarm, Israeli troops are supposed to withdraw farther, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the control of a “board of peace” of world leaders chaired by Trump, overseeing a administrative Palestinian committee to run day-to-day governance of Gaza.

The order of these measures is vague in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his remarks on Sunday, Netanyahu focused on Hamas disarmament.

“I think it’s important to ensure that Hamas abides not only with the ceasefire, but also with their commitment which they undertook to disarm and have Gaza demilitarise,” he said.

Potential Options and Political Positions

Netanyahu raised the prospects of “other options” to the ISF, without clarifying what those might be. He would not rule out Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, labeling it as a subject of “discussion”, and reiterated that Israel was adamantly against the creation of a Palestinian state, the objective 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 Legal Cases

Netanyahu stated the reason he would not be able to make a return visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as fabricated by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a way of diverting attention from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any misconduct, but stepped aside from his role in May pending the outcome of an investigation.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “destroying the credibility of the ICC” with “unfounded charges of starvation and genocide” from a “compromised official”.

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

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