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Benjamin Netanyahu has proclaimed that the initial segment of the internationally-supported Gaza halt in hostilities framework is nearing conclusion, and added that the second stage must involve the disarmament of Hamas.

Forthcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli leader said he would talk about the subsequent actions in late November 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 initial stage,” Netanyahu said. “But we have to ensure that we achieve the identical objectives in the next phase, and that’s something I anticipate addressing with President Trump.”

German Leader Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was talking at a shared media briefing with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who commented: “Stage two must start immediately and then phase three must also be considered.”

Merz is the initial leader of a major European state to hold talks with Netanyahu in Israel since the international criminal court issued 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 indicated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany regardless of the ICC warrants, but noted on Sunday a visit was not at this time planned. Netanyahu dismisses the warrants as “baseless charges” from a “corrupt prosecutor”.

Details of the Ongoing Ceasefire

During the first phase of the current ceasefire agreement, Hamas released the final 20 surviving Israeli captives in return for some 2,000 Palestinian detainees held by Israel, and it has handed over all but one of 28 bodies of hostages killed during the war. Concurrently, Israeli forces have pulled back to a truce line, leaving them in control of 58% of the Gaza Strip.

Since the ceasefire was put into effect on 10 October, Israeli forces have been responsible for the deaths of over 360 Palestinians, including an estimated 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been fatally wounded in Hamas attacks over the same timeframe.

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 supposed to disarm, Israeli troops are meant to retreat more, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be established under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders led by Trump, supervising a administrative Palestinian council to run daily administration of Gaza.

The order of these measures is vague in Trump’s proposals or in resolution 2803. In his comments on Sunday, Netanyahu focused on Hamas disarmament.

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

Possible Alternatives and Political Stances

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

ICC Charges and Legal Proceedings

Netanyahu claimed the primary 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 top prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a way of diverting attention from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has refuted any misconduct, but stepped aside from his role in May awaiting the conclusion of an investigation.

Netanyahu asserted Khan was “damaging the credibility of the ICC” with “false charges of deprivation and acts of genocide” from a “compromised official”.

Another tribunal, the international court of justice, is weighing up allegations that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN independent investigative commission found that Israel had carried out genocide.

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