Israel rejected the 15-point plan for the Gaza Strip proposed by the Board of Peace, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared while speaking in a Sunday afternoon cabinet meeting.
“Israel rejects the 15-point Gaza document proposed by the Board of Peace,” Netanyahu said. “The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed.”
Netanyahu also reiterated his opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state.
“As for the Gaza Strip, first of all, I want to make the main point clear: as long as I am prime minister, there will be no Palestinian state, not in Gaza and not in Judea and Samaria. Neither ‘Fatahstan’ nor ‘Hamastan,’” he said.
Netanyahu added that Israel was currently in talks with the US about the disarmament of Hamas, but emphasized that it would need to be “genuine disarmament, not fictitious disarmament.”
“When I say Hamas is disarmed, that means the heavy weapons, the less heavy weapons – all the weapons,” he said.
Israel would stand its ground on which US proposals it finds unacceptable, Netanyahu added.
Netanyahu also addressed rumors regarding Israel’s activity in Lebanon.
“In recent days, Israel has acted forcefully in Lebanon, eliminating terrorists, including in the Ali al-Taher Ridge,” Netanyahu said. He added that, although he could not elaborate further on the matter, he could say that Israel was conducting “very important activity.”
Senior Hamas official says Hamas remains committed to plan
Senior Hamas official Basem Naim told Reuters that the terror group expects mediators and the US to “press Netanyahu and his government to adhere to the roadmap.”
Naim said that Hamas remains committed to the roadmap agreed with in Cairo.
Netanyahu says he values 'historic partnership' with US, Trump
Speaking on Iran, Netanyahu said that Iran was keeping from striking Israel because it “knows what a powerful blow we (Israel) will deal it if it does.”
Netanyahu also expressed his appreciation for US President Donald Trump and the alliance between Israel and the US regarding keeping Iran from attaining nuclear weapons.
Earlier on Sunday, Army Radio reported that Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz quietly approved new development and reconstruction in the Gaza Strip two weeks ago.
According to Army Radio, the location marked for new construction is east of Rafah, within the Yellow Line, with the plan being to build new living spaces for Palestinians outside of Hamas’s control.
Security sources said that the workers involved in the construction would be Gazan Palestinians, who are currently having their background checked by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency).
Smotrich welcomes Netanyahu's rejection of the plan
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich commended Netanyahu’s statements, saying he “welcomed the prime minister’s unequivocal clarification.”
“We went to war with one central objective: the destruction of Hamas militarily, civilly, and as a governing authority. That means there can be no Hamas in Gaza the day after, and Gaza must not pose a threat to Israeli citizens and residents of the South for many years to come. This roadmap runs 180 degrees contrary to that objective,” Smotrich said.
Smotrich also stated that all reconstruction in Gaza would first require the complete disarmament of Hamas.
“The objective of the war to which we are committed is clear: a situation in which there is no Hamas in Gaza... we will not give up even a fraction of that objective,” he said.