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Benjamin Netanyahu has noted that the opening phase of the internationally-supported Gaza ceasefire plan is close to completion, noting that the next phase must require the demilitarization of Hamas.

Upcoming Talks in Washington

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

“We’re about to complete the initial stage,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to ensure that we secure the identical objectives in the next stage, and that’s something I anticipate reviewing with President Trump.”

German Chancellor Meets with Netanyahu

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

Merz is the first leader of a significant European state to confer with 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 alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

After securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had indicated he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany despite the ICC warrants, but said on Sunday a trip was not presently planned. Netanyahu disregards the warrants as “fabricated charges” from a “biased prosecutor”.

Details of the Current Truce

During the initial stage of the existing ceasefire deal, Hamas released the final 20 surviving Israeli captives in return for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 bodies of hostages who died during the war. Meanwhile, Israeli forces have pulled back to a truce line, leaving 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 fatally wounded in Hamas military actions over the identical period.

Future Stages and Ambiguous Timeline

Not one of Trump’s proposals, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which mostly endorsed them, specified a timetable transitioning the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is required to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to pull back further, and an international stabilization force is to be created under the control of a “board of peace” of world leaders headed by Trump, supervising a administrative Palestinian committee to run daily governance of Gaza.

The sequencing of these measures is not clear in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his comments on Sunday, Netanyahu put his emphasis on Hamas disarmament.

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

Potential Options and Political Positions

Netanyahu mentioned the prospects of “alternatives” to the ISF, without elaborating on what those might be. He would not dismiss Israeli annexation of the West Bank, labeling it as a topic of “negotiation”, and stressed that Israel was adamantly against the creation of a Palestinian state, the objective 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 Legal Cases

Netanyahu stated the primary reason he would not be able to make a return visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he characterized as invented by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a way of shifting focus from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any misconduct, but stepped down from his role in May awaiting the conclusion of an investigation.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “harming the reputation of the ICC” with “unfounded allegations of starvation and acts of genocide” from a “compromised official”.

A separate court, the international court of justice, is weighing up allegations that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN independent investigative commission found that Israel had carried out genocide.

Asked about the prospect of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz told reporters on Sunday: “There is no reason to discuss this at the present time.”