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Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that the initial segment of the internationally-supported Gaza ceasefire proposal is approaching completion, adding that the second stage must require the demilitarization of Hamas.

Forthcoming Discussions in Washington

The Israeli premier revealed he would examine the future steps in the coming weeks in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were outlined in a UN Security Council resolution on 17 November.

“We’re about to complete the first stage,” Netanyahu said. “But we have to ensure that we achieve the same outcomes in the second phase, and that’s something I am eager to discussing with President Trump.”

European Chancellor Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was speaking at a joint press conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Stage two must begin now and then phase three must also be considered.”

Merz is the initial head of state of a major European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the International Criminal Court (ICC) delivered warrants for arrest for the Israeli prime minister and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in November last year for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegations in Gaza.

After winning federal elections in February, Merz had indicated he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany despite the ICC warrants, but clarified on Sunday a visit was not presently planned. Netanyahu disregards the warrants as “fabricated charges” from a “biased prosecuting office”.

Terms of the Current Ceasefire

During the initial stage of the present ceasefire agreement, Hamas freed the last 20 surviving Israeli hostages in return for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has handed over all but one of 28 bodies of hostages who died during the war. Concurrently, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a ceasefire line, resulting in them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.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 been responsible for the deaths of more than 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Hamas attacks over the same period.

Future Stages and Unclear Sequencing

Not one of Trump’s proposals, nor UN security council resolution 2803 which largely supported them, set out a schedule extending the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is expected to disarm, Israeli troops are meant to withdraw farther, and an international stabilization force is to be established under the authority of a “peace board” of world leaders led by Trump, overseeing a technocratic Palestinian council to run day-to-day governance of Gaza.

The sequencing of these measures is vague in Trump’s plan or in resolution 2803. In his comments on Sunday, Netanyahu stressed Hamas disarmament.

“I think it’s crucial to ensure that Hamas abides not only with the ceasefire, but also with their obligation which they agreed to to disarm and have Gaza demilitarized,” he said.

Possible Options and Diplomatic Stances

Netanyahu mentioned the possibility of “other options” to the ISF, without explaining what those might be. He would not rule out Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, describing it as a topic of “discussion”, and stressed that Israel was strongly opposed the establishment of a Palestinian state, the aim of the peace process desired by most European and Arab capitals as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

ICC Charges and Legal Proceedings

Netanyahu said the reason he would not be able make a reciprocal visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he characterized as fabricated by the court’s top prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a way of shifting focus from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any wrongdoing, but stepped aside from his role in May awaiting the outcome of an investigation.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “harming the credibility of the ICC” with “trumped-up allegations of deprivation and genocide” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

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

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