Israel rejects Gaza plan in new break from Trump

JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rejected a US-led Gaza plan endorsed by Hamas, putting distance between himself and President Donald Trump as he tries to shore up his base ahead of elections.

After more than a week of gradually escalating criticism of the plan, and despite receiving assurances that Israel would not need to start withdrawing from Gaza immediately, Netanyahu explicitly opposed the deal following pushback from his right-wing allies.

"Israel rejects the 15-point document," Netanyahu said, referring to the plan Hamas agreed to in late July.

The Israeli military "will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed, and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and our citizens", he told a cabinet meeting.

Netanyahu described Trump, who had hailed the Gaza deal as a milestone for peace, as "our greatest friend in the White House" — but quickly made clear he was willing to challenge him, saying Israel was raising its objections with the United States.

"They have ideas; some of them are acceptable to us and some are not, and we know how to stand our ground on these matters," he said.

Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader, is running even or trailing in some polls ahead of Oct 27 elections, the country's first since the Oct 7, 2023 attack by Hamas that set off the latest Gaza conflict.

Polls show the Gaza plan is unpopular with Netanyahu's right-wing base, and far-right members of his cabinet have urged him to "kill it".

The head of Trump's body implementing the plan, dubbed the "Board of Peace", defended the plan as a way to prevent a repeat of Oct 7.

"The option we are offering today is the only way forward that ensures this tragedy does not happen again," Nickolay Mladenov, the board's high representative for Gaza, told Israel's Channel 12 television.

Calling for pressure

Hamas, which publicly backed the plan days after selecting a new leader, Khalil al-Hayya, called on Washington to mount pressure on Netanyahu.

"We expect the mediators and the American guarantor to pressure Netanyahu and his government to adhere to the road map, and not obstruct the process for internal political and electoral reasons," Bassem Naim, a member of Hamas' political bureau, told AFP.

Hamas in a statement said it was still committed to the plan.

Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Fahmy on Monday criticized Netanyahu for rejecting the plan. In a news statement, Fahmy said the move showed "blatant disregard" for international will and established peace-process frameworks.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Sunday urged all parties to the Gaza peace plan to honor their commitments and avoid any steps that could block its implementation or undo the progress made so far.

Abdelatty made the remarks during a phone call with Mladenov, Egypt's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The two sides reviewed the road map for the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire plan, with Abdelatty saying that all agreed provisions must be implemented, including full, safe and sustained humanitarian access and complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, according to the statement.

AGENCIES-XINHUA