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Benjamin Netanyahu has indicated that the opening segment of the UN-endorsed Gaza truce plan is approaching completion, noting that the subsequent phase must include the disarmament of Hamas.

Forthcoming Discussions in Washington

The Israeli prime minister said he would discuss the subsequent actions later this month in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza proposals were codified in a UN Security Council decision on 17 November.

“We’re about to finish the initial stage,” Netanyahu remarked. “But we have to make sure that we attain the identical outcomes in the second stage, and that’s something I look forward to addressing with President Trump.”

German Chancellor Visits Netanyahu

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

Merz is the first head of state of a significant European state to hold talks with Netanyahu in Israel since the International Criminal Court (ICC) delivered arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister and his ex- defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in November last year for alleged 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 despite the ICC warrants, but said on Sunday a visit was not at this time under consideration. Netanyahu disregards the warrants as “fabricated charges” from a “biased prosecutor”.

Details of the Ongoing Truce

During the first phase of the current ceasefire deal, Hamas released the final 20 living Israeli hostages in return 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. At the same time, Israeli forces have pulled back to a demarcation line, leaving them in occupation of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was declared on 10 October, Israeli forces have killed over 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Hamas military actions over the identical period.

Future Stages and Ambiguous Timeline

Not one of Trump’s suggestions, nor UN Security Council resolution 2803 which largely supported them, set out a timetable extending the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israeli troops are scheduled to pull back further, and an international stabilization force is to be set up under the authority of a “peace board” of world leaders chaired by Trump, overseeing a administrative Palestinian committee to run daily administration of Gaza.

The sequencing of these actions is vague in Trump’s proposals or in resolution 2803. In his remarks on Sunday, Netanyahu focused on Hamas disarmament.

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

Possible Alternatives and Political Positions

Netanyahu raised the prospects of “other options” to the ISF, without clarifying what those might be. He would not rule out Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, labeling it as a topic of “negotiation”, and stressed that Israel was firmly opposed the creation of a Palestinian state, the objective of the peace process desired by most European and Arab governments as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

ICC Charges and Legal Cases

Netanyahu said the reason he would not be able to make a return 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 denied any misconduct, but stepped down from his role in May pending the outcome of an investigation.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “destroying the standing of the ICC” with “unfounded allegations of deprivation and genocide” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

A separate court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), is considering charges that Israel has perpetrated genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN autonomous investigative commission concluded that Israel had carried out genocide.

Questioned about the possibility of Netanyahu visiting Germany, Merz informed reporters on Sunday: “There is no reason to consider this at the moment.”