Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Marc Israel Sellem/POOL)
Israeli government reportedly conditioning implementation of second phase of Gaza deal on Hamas agreeing to disarm and leave Gaza Strip and exclusion of Palestinian Authority from involvement in post-war Gaza administration.
By World Israel News Staff
Israel is conditioning the implementation of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal on Hamas’s willingness to disarm and leave the Gaza Strip, according to a report by Channel 12.
The report, broadcast on Tuesday night following a meeting of Israel’s security cabinet a day earlier, claimed that during the cabinet’s deliberations, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told ministers that Israel has a firm set of conditions heading into the latest around of talks in Doha, Qatar.
The news comes as Netanyahu replaces the head of the Israeli negotiating team, swapping Mossad chief David Barnea with Strategic Affairs Minister and former ambassador to the U.S. Ron Dermer, a longtime Netanyahu loyalist.
According to Tuesday night’s report, Netanyahu told cabinet ministers that in the upcoming Doha talks, Dermer will insist that Hamas disarm and that the terrorist group withdraw from Gaza, with the movement’s leadership going into exile.
A report by national broadcaster Kan echoed this claim, stating that Netanyahu has conditioned the implementation of the second phase of the hostage deal on the total demilitarization of the Gaza Strip.
In addition, Channel 12 reported, Israel is demanding that a deal to implement phase two of the ceasefire include a provision excluding the Palestinian Authority from any role in the postwar management of the Gaza Strip.
On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar (New Hope) said Israel would “not accept the continued presence of Hamas or any other terrorist organization in Gaza.”
However, Sa’ar continued, “if we will see there is a constructive dialogue with a possible horizon of getting to an agreement, then we will make this timeframe work longer.”
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