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Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that the initial part of the UN-endorsed Gaza ceasefire framework is nearing completion, noting that the second phase must involve the disarmament of Hamas.

Forthcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli prime minister stated he would discuss the next steps in the coming weeks in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were formalized in a UN Security Council resolution on 17 November.

“We are nearing finish the first stage,” Netanyahu stated. “But we have to guarantee that we secure the equivalent outcomes in the second stage, and that’s something I look forward to addressing with President Trump.”

European Chancellor Visits Netanyahu

The prime minister was talking at a joint news conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who stated: “Phase two must begin now and then the third phase must also be taken into account.”

Merz is the first head of state of a significant European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court issued warrants for arrest for the Israeli prime minister and his ex- 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 said he would welcome Netanyahu to Germany regardless of the ICC warrants, but said on Sunday a visit was not at this time planned. Netanyahu rejects the warrants as “fabricated allegations” from a “biased prosecuting office”.

Terms of the Ongoing Ceasefire

During the initial stage of the current ceasefire deal, Hamas freed the final 20 surviving Israeli captives in exchange for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has transferred all but one of 28 remains of hostages who died during the war. Concurrently, Israeli forces have pulled back to a ceasefire line, resulting in them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Following the ceasefire was declared on 10 October, Israeli forces have been responsible for the deaths of more than 360 Palestinians, including an estimated 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas military actions over the identical timeframe.

Future Stages and Unclear Timeline

Not one of Trump’s proposals, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which mostly endorsed them, detailed a schedule transitioning the ceasefire into a permanent peace. Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to retreat more, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders headed by Trump, overseeing a technocratic Palestinian council to run daily administration of Gaza.

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

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

Potential Alternatives and Political 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, labeling it as a subject of “discussion”, and stressed that Israel was strongly opposed the establishment of a Palestinian state, the goal of the peace process desired by most European and Arab governments as well as the vast majority of UN member states.

International Criminal Court Charges and Judicial Proceedings

Netanyahu said the primary reason he would not be able to make a return visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as manufactured by the court’s top prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a means of shifting focus from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any misconduct, but recused himself from his role in May pending the conclusion of an inquiry.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “harming the credibility of the ICC” with “trumped-up 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 autonomous commission of inquiry concluded that Israel had committed genocide.

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