Hamas willing to surrender police force’s rifles but rejects full disarmament

Hamas reportedly signaling willingness to hand over some small arms from its police force while doubling down on refusal to accept total disarmament.

By World Israel News Staff

Hamas has signaled that it may be willing to hand over thousands of automatic rifles and other small arms used by its police force and internal security services, according to a New York Times report published Monday.

The reported proposal would stop well short of full disarmament, the central demand in current negotiations over Gaza’s postwar future.

According to the report, two Hamas officials said the terror group’s latest position involves relinquishing weapons tied to its internal policing apparatus rather than its full military arsenal.

That would appear to preserve the terror organization’s core fighting capacity even as mediators push for a broader demilitarization plan tied to reconstruction and further Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

The officials did not specify which agencies beyond the police might also be required to surrender weapons, though the reference could include a domestic intelligence body.

The officials said Hamas representatives had already met three times in Gaza City with other armed factions and government officials to prepare for transferring governance of the territory to the new administrative committee.

“Hamas completed all preparations for a full handover of power,” the officials wrote, adding that the only obstacle was that the new administration had not yet physically deployed inside Gaza and was still operating provisionally from Cairo.

The issue of Hamas weapons has emerged as one of the main obstacles in efforts to advance the next phase of the ceasefire framework brokered last year.

A Reuters report in late March said a US-backed plan envisions Hamas disarming in stages over eight months, alongside the destruction of tunnels and the transfer of control to a technocratic administration.

But Hamas has repeatedly rejected calls for immediate, unconditional disarmament. In a statement earlier this month, spokesman Abu Ubaida said raising the issue of weapons “in a crude manner” would not be accepted.

Hamas has said that it will not discuss surrendering arms without guarantees that Israel will fully carry out its side of the ceasefire arrangements.

Previous reporting said Hamas has also sought to preserve a role for its roughly 10,000-member police force in any future Gaza administration, even as Israel opposes any continued Hamas presence in governance or security structures.