Israel Demands Hamas Surrender All Weapons at Once Before Gaza Withdrawal

Israel's Peace Council is shifting its approach to disarming Hamas in Gaza, now requiring the militant group and other terror organizations to hand over all their weapons simultaneously rather than in stages. This change follows a meeting between US Special Envoy Jared Kushner and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A council official explained the new strategy aims to reduce risks for involved countries and ensure a complete, rapid, and uncompromising disarmament of Hamas. The official emphasized that if Hamas refuses to disarm voluntarily, Israel will have international political backing to use force.

Netanyahu insisted that the first step must be the transfer of weapons for destruction under the supervision of the international stabilization force commander in Gaza, General Jasper Jeffress, with American oversight. Kushner told Fox News that Hamas has received a firm ultimatum to comply with disarmament agreements or face military action by the Israel Defense Forces, which "will finish the job." He added that failure to meet commitments would result in increased support from the US and other countries for Israel to complete the disarmament.

The Peace Council stated that all parties agree on the ultimate goal: full disarmament and dismantling of Hamas’s control over Gaza, complete demilitarization of the territory, and only then a full Israeli withdrawal. Reconstruction of Gaza will not proceed without Hamas’s disarmament across the entire region.