Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated that he is “committed” to Donald Trump’s plan to take over and develop the Gaza Strip, amid uncertainty over whether Israel will send a delegation to Qatar to discuss the second stage of the fragile ceasefire in the war with Hamas.
In a statement on Monday, the Israeli prime minister said: “Just as I have committed to, on the day after the war in Gaza, there will be neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority. I am committed to US president Trump’s plan for the creation of a different Gaza.”
The remarks come after a report by Sky News Arabia on Sunday night that Hamas was prepared to hand over control of Gaza to its West Bank-based rival, the semi-autonomous Palestinian Authority (PA), following pressure from mediator Egypt.
The broadcaster said, citing Egyptian sources, that the Palestinian militant group had agreed to the establishment of a temporary committee to oversee the reconstruction of the territory, which has been levelled by Israeli airstrikes over 16 months of war.
Netanyahu’s comments will weigh heavily over the future of the month-old truce after it almost collapsed last week following Trump’s surprise announcement that the US would “take over” Gaza and “relocate” its 2.3m population to countries such as Egypt and Jordan. International humanitarian law experts say the proposal amounts to ethnic cleansing.
Israel’s security cabinet is supposed to decide on Monday evening whether to send a delegation to the Qatari capital, Doha, to discuss the difficult second stage of the ceasefire agreement. The second phase is scheduled to begin in early March, and would involve the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, effectively ending the war. The third phase is supposed to address the exchange of bodies, a reconstruction plan for Gaza, and future governance.
According to Israeli media, finance minister Bezalel Smotrich’s far-right Religious Zionism party, which was opposed to the ceasefire, is still threatening to collapse Netanyahu’s coalition if Israel does not return to fighting when the first stage of the ceasefire expires.
While Israeli public opinion is unlikely to sway government decision making on the war, protests were held across the country on Monday to mark 500 days since Israeli hostages were kidnapped and taken to Gaza in the Hamas attack of October 2023 that triggered the conflict. In Jerusalem, dozens of demonstrators marched to Netanyahu’s residence, chanting slogans and carrying banners that read “Home Now”, before meeting lawmakers at the Knesset.
Captives have been released in batches of three or four in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees on a weekly basis since 19 January, but about 45 more Israelis and foreign nationals are not eligible for release until the second stage of the agreement.
It is widely believed at home and abroad that Netanyahu, afraid that losing office will leave him more vulnerable to corruption charges, has prioritised the survival of his government over a hostage deal.
Netanyahu has publicly embraced Trump’s plan for the US to take ownership of Gaza and redevelop the coastal strip as a resort, telling reporters on Sunday during a visit to Israel by the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, that the government was “working closely” alongside Washington to implement the Trump proposal.
The US president’s vision for Gaza has been flatly rejected by the Palestinians and the rest of the Arab world, which is now scrambling to come up with alternatives.
Saudi Arabia is hosting a summit for delegations from Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, and the Arab League will convene to discuss the reconstruction of Gaza and governance options on 27 February.
Reuters reported on Monday that the EU is planning to tell Israel next week that Palestinians uprooted from their Gaza homes should be ensured a dignified return and that Europe will contribute to rebuilding the shattered territory.
