U.S. President Donald Trump wrote that IDF forces will withdraw from Gaza only after Hamas completes its disarmament. Gaza Peace Council head Nikolay Mladenov, however, wrote that the withdrawal must advance step by step in tandem with disarmament.
The divergent positions emerged early Friday, hours after President Trump announced the historic disarmament agreement at 05:13 Jerusalem. While Trump wrote that IDF forces would withdraw only after Hamas completes its disarmament, Gaza Peace Council head Nikolay Mladenov proposed a phased, synchronized process: "The withdrawal must advance step by step with disarmament."
President Trump's announcement at 05:13 Jerusalem detailed a phased plan over 200-300 days, including weapons collection by an international force and a new Palestinian technocratic government. Subsequent statements from the White House confirmed the deal, while a Hamas senior official, Razi Hamad, conditioned the group's disarmament on an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza—a position that appeared to contrast with earlier reports of Hamas's agreement to the plan. Israeli officials have not yet issued a formal response.
The Gaza Peace Council, established under the second Trump administration, has been mediating the framework. As The Zioneer reported on Jul 6, Mladenov previously stated that reconstruction and IDF withdrawal hinge on Hamas disarmament. A revised weapons-disposal plan backed by U.S. envoys was presented to Hamas in June, according to informed sources.
Israel's official position remains unstated, and the precise mechanism for synchronizing withdrawal with disarmament has yet to be resolved. Implementation details—including the role of the international stabilization force and the formation of a Palestinian technocratic government—are expected to be finalized in the coming days.
9 developments
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- DevelopingUS supports phased IDF withdrawal from Lebanon under Hezbollah disarmament deal, Israeli media report
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