Netanyahu rejects Trump's 15-point Gaza plan, demands Hamas fully disarm before any IDF withdrawal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected on 9 August 2026 the 15-point Gaza plan backed by US President Donald Trump and accepted by Hamas, insisting the IDF will not withdraw until Hamas is fully disarmed.
Netanyahu rejects the 15-point document
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected on Sunday, 9 August 2026, the 15-point plan for Gaza backed by US President Donald Trump and accepted by Hamas. Speaking during a cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said Israel will not withdraw its forces from the Palestinian territory until Hamas is completely disarmed.
Israel rejects the 15-point document. The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is truly disarmed and will continue neutralizing the threats against our forces and our citizens.
The plan and its conditions
The 15-point document constitutes, in theory, the final phase of a ceasefire pushed by the United States and announced in October. The ceasefire reduced Israeli military operations in Gaza but did not end violence in the territory. Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007, accepted the agreement and contemplated handing over its weapons to a new Palestinian authority tasked with administering the territory.
The plan stipulated that Israel would begin withdrawing its forces from Gaza in parallel with the disarmament process of Hamas. Netanyahu rejects this condition and demands that the Palestinian group surrender and destroy its entire arsenal beforehand.
We are talking about real disarmament, not fictitious disarmament.
Peace Board shifts position
After meeting with Netanyahu last week, the Peace Board, the body created by Trump to supervise implementation of the agreement, modified its position. It stated that Israel would only need to complete its withdrawal once a "complete" disarmament had occurred. Members of the Peace Board consider Netanyahu's demand for Hamas to hand over all its weapons difficult to carry out in practice.
Coalition tensions and talks with Washington
Netanyahu's stance has generated tensions within his own coalition. Facing a political dispute over his continuity in power, Netanyahu received pressure from his far-right allies to call a new cabinet vote and abandon the US plan for Gaza. Netanyahu said Israel is in talks with Washington about its objections and left open the possibility of negotiating some aspects of the agreement.
They have ideas; some are acceptable to us and others are not, and we know how to stand firm on these matters.
The prime minister insisted that Hamas must surrender the totality of its weapons, a position that deepens the standoff over the timeline for any Israeli withdrawal and the sequencing of disarmament under the US-backed framework.
