Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has delivered a stunning rebuff to US President Donald Trump, rejecting the 15-point Gaza peace plan drawn up by Trump’s Board of Peace. Netanyahu made clear Sunday that Israel rejects the 15-point document, stating unambiguously, “I want to be precise here: Israel rejects the 15-point document.” Speaking at a cabinet meeting, he said the Israeli military would not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is disarmed, clarifying that this means heavy weaponry, lighter weaponry, all weaponry, and that Israeli forces would continue to act against threats to its troops and citizens.
The remarks come more than a week after Trump had announced a breakthrough in negotiations, with his Board of Peace issuing the 15-point plan aimed at securing lasting peace in the territory. Trump had said last month that Hamas, which is backed by Iran and had ruled Gaza for nearly two decades before its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war, had agreed to lay down its weapons. For its part, Hamas has avoided using the term “disarmament,” instead saying it agreed to hand over weapons to be stored under a US-backed Palestinian technocratic administration.
Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich praised Netanyahu’s stance, stating that Israel went to war with the central goal of destroying Hamas and that the military cannot withdraw even a millimetre from the Gaza Strip until Hamas is completely dismantled and demobilized. Netanyahu also used the cabinet meeting to reaffirm his broader political position, declaring that as long as he remains prime minister, no Palestinian state will be established.
Notably, Israel has scaled back its attacks in Gaza since meetings between Netanyahu and Nikolay Mladenov, the Gaza envoy for Trump’s Board of Peace overseeing the ceasefire, with Israel reportedly agreeing that its military would only act against what it perceives as immediate threats. Netanyahu is currently facing a tough domestic political battle ahead of elections scheduled for October, with the Gaza and Iran conflicts likely to prove pivotal to the outcome. He added that Israel is in ongoing discussions with Washington on the matter, noting that some American ideas are acceptable to Israel while others are not.
This marks a notable escalation in tensions between the Trump administration and Netanyahu’s government, with the explicit rejection of a plan Trump has repeatedly touted as a key foreign policy achievement.