RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Israel "rejects" the Board of Peace Gaza disarmament roadmap, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, pushing back against claims the country has accepted the US-backed proposal and saying that he has no issue with standing up to pressure from US President Donald Trump pressure to accept the terms.
"I want to clarify here," Netanyahu said at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting. "Israel rejects the 15-point document. "
The US-backed Board of Peace is trying to move forward with its roadmap for postwar Gaza, which Hamas has accepted, while calling on the US and other mediators to pressure Israel into agreement. The terror group has avoided the use of the term "disarmament," saying instead that it agrees to hand over weapons to be stored under a US-backed Palestinian technocrat administration that would run affairs in Gaza under the supervision of the Board of Peace.
Israeli officials warn that the terror organization is exploiting the process to prevent renewed Israeli military action, with top officials reportedly calling Hamas's agreement to the deal a "strategic ambush" of Israel.
While the security cabinet last month approved having an International Stabilization Force enter Gaza to disarm Hamas and assume control of the territory, senior Israeli officials and ministers have publicly urged the premier to openly declare that he will not accept the terms of the plan, which would see the IDF begin to pull back from Gazan territory.
"I heard people saying, 'You didn't say so,'" Netanyahu told his cabinet Sunday. "So here I am saying it again: Israel rejects the 15-point document."
"The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is disarmed. And when I say Hamas must be disarmed, I mean the heavy weapons, the less-heavy weapons, all weapons. And we are talking about genuine disarmament, not a fictitious one," he clarified.
He also said that Hamas has been effectively deterred from attacking Israel or its forces, saying: "It may attack, but why have long weeks gone by without it attacking us? Because it knows what a powerful blow we will inflict on it if it does."
Israel is discussing its reservations regarding the roadmap with the US, he said. "They have ideas. Some of them are acceptable to us and some are unacceptable to us, and we know how to stand up to these things. We have proven this in the past, and we are proving it today as well. In addition, the IDF will continue to thwart threats against our forces and against our citizens."
Netanyahu also said that while he values Trump, he is unafraid to push back against him when circumstances necessitate it.
"I have great appreciation for President Trump," he told his cabinet. "He is a great friend of ours in the White House. I greatly appreciate the historic partnership with the United States against Iran's attempts to acquire nuclear weapons. And I want to emphasize again: With an agreement or without an agreement, as long as I am prime minister, Iran will not possess nuclear weapons."
"Unlike all those who preach to us, we are doing what needs to be done for Israel's security, and we can and know how to stand our ground even against our very best friends when necessary," he said.
"Regarding Lebanon — here too we are hearing all kinds of rumors," he said. "I want to make it clear: In recent days, Israel has acted forcefully in Lebanon, eliminating terrorists, including in the Ali al-Taher ridge. I cannot elaborate on this. We are engaged in a very important operation. We are acting with sound judgment and wisdom."
"The security of all Israel's citizens is not up for negotiation," he said. "We stand firm on these interests."
"We are not doing this in advertising agencies," he said in a dig at his political rivals. "We are doing it for real, on the ground."
He also stressed that he will never accept a Palestinian state in Gaza or the West Bank.
Reacting to the Netanyahu's comment, far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich praised him for making his opposition to the Board of Peace plan clear.
"We went to war with a central goal: the destruction of Hamas," Smotrich said in a statement. "The (military) cannot withdraw even a millimeter from the Gaza Strip. The Gaza Strip cannot begin any process of reconstruction before the complete dismantling and demobilization of Hamas and the Gaza Strip."
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