Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew to Washington on Sunday on the Wing of Zion ahead of his meeting with US President Donald Trump, where the central topic of discussion will be who should control Gaza in the aftermath of the war.
This is his first visit to the US after Israel's Operation Rising Lion and the US's Operation Midnight Hammer against the Islamic Republic. Before his departure, Netanyahu declared that Hamas still holds about 20 live hostages, emphasizing that Israel is committed to bringing them all home.
Trump, on the other hand, wants to finalize the conditions for ending the war in Gaza with Netanyahu at their meeting in the White House, according to senior US officials. A "post-war" plan that defines how Gaza will be managed without Hamas control and what security arrangements will be set up to prevent the terrorist organization from recovering will be key to any agreement that ends the war.
Both Israel and the US wish to avoid a situation where Gaza develops a Hezbollah-like model, similar to Lebanon, where on the one hand, there is a civilian government with no Hamas representation, but on the other hand, the organization continues to operate underground and hold onto weapons. If a hostage and ceasefire deal is reached, this will be the central issue for negotiation between Israel and Hamas during the 60 days of the ceasefire.
The dispute – and Israeli compromise
Israel has softened its stance on the issue of deporting senior Hamas officials from Gaza and is now willing to settle for a symbolic deportation of a few of the military branch's leaders.
"There aren't many senior Hamas officials left in Gaza. It won’t require a ship to exile them. A truck will suffice," said an Israeli official. The official further stated that Israel demands the dismantling of Hamas’s military wing but is willing to consider granting amnesty to terrorists who lay down their weapons.
Netanyahu opposes Hamas’s rule in Gaza but also rejects any involvement by the Palestinian Authority in managing the Strip. The prime minister wants Arab countries to manage Gaza with local Palestinian figures who are not affiliated with Hamas or the PA.
Arab countries oppose this idea and demand some involvement from the PA and a clear political horizon. The Trump administration's position on this matter is still not entirely clear.
Ongoing negotiations
Israel rejected Hamas’s demand for changes to the Qatari proposal for a hostage deal on Sunday night but announced that it would continue talks for their return.
"The changes that Hamas requested to the Qatari proposal were presented to us last night and are not acceptable to Israel," stated the PMO. "After an assessment, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed to accept the invitation for proximity talks and continue negotiations for the return of our hostages based on the Qatari proposal that Israel agreed to. The negotiating team is heading for talks in Qatar."
According to security sources, during a discussion that concluded late last night, the security cabinet dealt with steps in the Gaza Strip, which include the centers of maneuver for the five divisions, deepening ground operations into new areas with a focus on Gaza City and central refugee camps, and options to expand humanitarian aid distribution.
IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir presented the political echelon with three alternatives for the conclusion of Operation Gideon’s Chariots: occupying the entire Gaza Strip, encircling Gaza and central refugee camps, or moving toward a ceasefire agreement for the release of hostages, according to Walla.
Domestic opposition
Earlier this week, following Trump's announcement of Israel's agreement to the ceasefire framework in Gaza, Otzma Yehudit leader and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir pressured Religious Zionist Party leader and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to form a united front to halt progress on the issue.
Ben-Gvir published a letter to Smotrich in the media, claiming that only cooperation between the two far-right parties could block Trump’s plan. Smotrich’s office has yet to respond to the media outreach.
A source close to Smotrich addressed this and said that no meeting had been scheduled: "There has been no request from Ben-Gvir; there is a media briefing by Ben-Gvir about a meeting which was never scheduled. The issue of victory in Gaza is too significant, and the lives of the hostages are too precious to play media briefing games. The finance minister has been working on this issue with complete seriousness for quite some time."
Ben-Gvir attacked the hostage release deal framework Sunday night and called on Netanyahu to retract it.
"Promises for future disarmament and a partial deal that leads to an IDF withdrawal, the release of hundreds of terrorists, and the flow of aid to Hamas will take us further from defeating terrorism and reward Hamas," he said. "The way to bring back the hostages is by fully occupying the Gaza Strip, halting aid, and encouraging emigration. I call on Netanyahu to return to the path of decision and not to surrender."