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Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that the first segment of the United Nations-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal is nearing completion, noting that the subsequent stage must include the disarmament of Hamas.

Upcoming Talks in Washington

The Israeli leader mentioned he would address the following stages later this month in Washington with Donald Trump, whose Gaza initiatives were formalized in a UN Security Council resolution on 17 November.

“We are nearing complete the initial phase,” Netanyahu said. “But we have to make sure that we achieve the identical outcomes in the next phase, and that’s something I anticipate addressing with President Trump.”

European Chancellor Meets with Netanyahu

The prime minister was speaking at a joint news conference with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who commented: “The second phase must start immediately and then the third phase must also be examined.”

Merz is the first head of state of a major European state to confer with Netanyahu in Israel since the International Criminal Court (ICC) released arrest warrants 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 indicated he would invite Netanyahu to Germany regardless of the ICC warrants, but clarified on Sunday a trip was not presently being considered. Netanyahu dismisses the warrants as “fabricated allegations” from a “corrupt prosecuting office”.

Terms of the Current Ceasefire

Under the first phase of the current ceasefire deal, Hamas released the remaining 20 living 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 who died during the war. At the same time, Israeli forces have pulled back to a ceasefire line, leaving 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 over 360 Palestinians, including an approximate 70 children. Three Israeli soldiers have been killed in Hamas attacks over the same period.

Next Steps and Ambiguous Timeline

Not one of Trump’s suggestions, nor UN security council resolution 2803 which mostly supported them, specified a timetable extending the ceasefire into a lasting peace. Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israeli troops are meant to withdraw farther, and an international stabilisation force (ISF) is to be created under the authority of a “board of peace” of world leaders chaired by Trump, overseeing a administrative Palestinian council to run daily administration of Gaza.

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

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

Potential Options and Political Stances

Netanyahu raised the prospects of “alternatives” to the ISF, without explaining what those might be. He would not dismiss Israeli sovereignty of the West Bank, describing it as a topic of “negotiation”, and emphasized that Israel was adamantly opposed the creation of a Palestinian state, the objective of the peace process supported by most European and Arab governments as well as the overwhelming majority of UN member states.

ICC Warrants and Legal Cases

Netanyahu stated the reason he would not be able to make a reciprocal visit to Germany was the ICC arrest warrants, which he described as fabricated by the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, as a way of shifting focus from allegations of sexual harassment against him. Khan has denied any wrongdoing, but stepped down from his role in May awaiting the conclusion of an investigation.

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

Another tribunal, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), is reviewing charges that Israel has perpetrated genocide in Gaza. In September, a UN autonomous commission of inquiry determined 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.”