Israeli sources stated that there is a Qatari-Turkish proposal suggesting the transfer of Hamas weapons to the Palestinian Authority or storing them under international supervision. At the same time, Israel rejects the deadline requested by Doha and Ankara, which is two years, to complete the disarmament process of the movement, and stresses the need to complete this process within a few months.
The sources also confirmed that Tel Aviv strongly opposes the participation of Turkish forces in the international stabilization force in Gaza, while Israel is looking into launching a reconstruction phase based on a “Hamas-free civilian model” starting from Rafah.
According to Israeli intelligence estimates published by the newspaper, 75 percent of Gaza residents no longer support Hamas.
The sources warned that the movement is reorganizing its ranks and strengthening its almost complete control over the sector, exploiting the security vacuum resulting from the fragile truce.
The officials stressed the need to adopt an independent Israeli action plan to disarm Hamas, without relying on American or international initiatives that may be “lenient” towards it.
The head of the Hamas movement in Gaza, Khalil al-Hayya, announced on Saturday the movement’s readiness to hand over its weapons to the “state” that will administer the sector in the future, provided that the Israeli military presence ends. He said that Hamas’s weapons are “linked to the existence of the occupation and aggression, and if the occupation ends, these weapons will go to the state.” His office clarified that what is meant is “a future sovereign Palestinian state,” according to Agence France-Presse.
