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Benjamin Netanyahu has noted that the first segment of the United Nations-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal is close to completion, noting that the next phase must entail the disarmament of Hamas.

Forthcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli leader revealed he would address the following stages in late November in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza proposals were codified in a UN security council resolution on 17 November.

“We’re about to conclude the first phase,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to guarantee that we secure the identical objectives in the second phase, and that’s something I look forward to reviewing with President Trump.”

European Chancellor Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was talking at a joint news conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who commented: “Stage two must come now and then the third phase must also be examined.”

Merz is the initial head of state of a leading European state to confer with 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 war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

After securing victory in federal elections in February, Merz had stated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany notwithstanding the ICC warrants, but said on Sunday a visit was not currently being considered. Netanyahu rejects the warrants as “trumped-up allegations” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Details of the Ongoing Truce

During the first phase of the existing ceasefire deal, Hamas freed the last 20 living Israeli captives in return for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 remains of hostages who died during the war. At the same time, Israeli forces have withdrawn to a demarcation line, leaving them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was declared on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed over 360 Palestinians, including an estimated 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas attacks over the same period.

Future Stages and Ambiguous Sequencing

Neither Trump’s proposals, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which largely supported them, set out a schedule transitioning the ceasefire into a permanent peace. Hamas is expected to disarm, Israeli troops are meant to pull back further, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders chaired by Trump, supervising a administrative Palestinian council to run day-to-day governance of Gaza.

The order of these actions is unclear in Trump’s proposals or in resolution 2803. In his statements on Sunday, Netanyahu stressed 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 stated.

Possible Alternatives and Political Stances

Netanyahu raised the possibility of “other options” to the ISF, without elaborating on what those might be. He would not exclude Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, describing it as a topic of “debate”, and reiterated that Israel was strongly against the creation of a Palestinian state, the goal of the peace process supported by most European and Arab capitals as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

ICC Warrants and Judicial Cases

Netanyahu said the reason he would not be able make a reciprocal visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as invented by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a means of diverting attention from accusations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any misconduct, but stepped down from his role in May awaiting the conclusion of an inquiry.

Netanyahu said Khan was “damaging the standing of the ICC” with “false charges of deprivation and genocide” from a “compromised prosecutor”.

Another tribunal, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), is considering charges that Israel has perpetrated genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN independent commission of inquiry found that Israel had committed 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.”