Hamas wants guarantees that Israel will remove its troops before disarmament talks can happen, sources say

Mediators have been told by three sources that the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas won’t talk about giving up its weapons until they are sure that Israel will fully leave Gaza as planned in a disarmament plan from U.S. President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace.”

Trump’s plan for the Palestinian territory and a permanent end to the two-year war that started in October are having trouble getting along because Hamas refuses to give up its weapons.

At a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday and Thursday, Hamas representatives gave their initial response to a disarmament plan that was brought to the group’s attention last month, according to two Egyptian sources and a Palestinian official.

Two Egyptian sources told Reuters that Hamas brought a list of requests and changes to the board’s plan. These included ending Israeli violations, putting all the rules into action, and Israel leaving Gaza.

Hamas blames Israel for breaking the truce by attacking Gaza and killing hundreds of people. Israel says its attacks are meant to stop terrorists from attacking soon.

Sources say that Hamas also wanted to know more about what it saw as Israel’s continued growth of the places it controls. After the truce, Israel still had control over more than half of Gaza.
Sources indicate that Hamas refuses to discuss disarming until they address those issues.

Two Hamas officials declined to disclose the details of the discussions. When asked for a response, Israel’s government did not answer right away. When asked for comment, members of the Board of Peace did not respond right away.

NOT LIKELY TO GET THROUGH

Someone else who knows what the Board of Peace is thinking said that Hamas’s response meant that talks about the group giving up its weapons were not likely to lead to a quick breakthrough. According to a source, Hamas was supposed to meet with the negotiators again next week.

The source said that the U.S. could start rebuilding even if Hamas doesn’t give up its weapons, but only in areas that are fully controlled by the Israeli forces. During the Iran War, important funding promises were being held up, the person said. Many of these promises came from Gulf Arab states.

Someone from the Palestinian side who was involved in the talks said that Hamas probably wouldn’t say no to the plan right away, but “it will not say yes until the comments and demands of Palestinian factions are addressed.”

Israel has said that it will not leave Gaza until Hamas gives up all of its weapons.

Nicholas Mladenov, Trump’s top Board of Peace envoy in the Middle East, wrote on social media on Wednesday that the plan had been backed by all parties involved in the mediation. “The international community has supported it; now is the time to agree on the framework for its implementation,” he said. “We can’t waste any more time for the good of both the Palestinians and the Israelis,” Mladenov wrote on X.

Israeli officials say that the strikes by Hamas on October 7, 2023, killed 1,200 people.

According to Gazan health officials, Israel’s subsequent two-year campaign killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, most of whom were civilians. The campaign also caused famine, destroyed most buildings, and forced most of the territory’s residents to leave their homes, often more than once.