Israel – In a new development threatening the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed that the continuation of the next phase of the agreement is conditional upon Hamas handing over its weapons and fully disarming itself.
Warning that the alternative would be a widespread escalation, which he described as “an explosion of hell.”
Details of the statements
In an interview with the American CBS network, Netanyahu said, “The hostages have returned alive. Now it is time to disarm,” indicating that this is the essence of the conditions set by the US administration led by President Donald Trump.
Netanyahu emphasized that the demands are clear. They include the surrender of all weapons possessed by Hamas, the closure of weapons production facilities inside the Gaza Strip, and an end to arms smuggling across the border or tunnels.
He added, “We will not accept the presence of a military structure that threatens our security again, and if these conditions are not met, the response will be harsh.”
hostage remains crisis
In a related development, diplomatic sources reported that Hamas informed mediators of its intention to hand over four more bodies of hostages killed during the war. This brings the number of recovered bodies to 12, while 16 other bodies remain inside the Gaza Strip.
The movement said that some bodies are still trapped under the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israeli forces or in occupied areas, making access to them difficult.
However, the Israeli side described these statements as “procrastination,” indicating that Tel Aviv would not open the Rafah crossing or ease restrictions until all the bodies were recovered.
Trump stresses disarming Hamas
“Hamas must be disarmed, or we will, and it will be done quickly and perhaps violently,” US President Donald Trump said in remarks on Tuesday.
Trump expressed doubts about the casualty figures provided by Hamas, noting that the movement was not transparent.
Trump said: “Before the agreement was signed, we were told there were 24 to 26 bodies, and now we’re discovering there are fewer. This is unacceptable. We want all hostages back, dead or alive.”
