Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has formally rejected a 15-point U.S.-brokered peace plan for Gaza, insisting his forces will not withdraw until Hamas is “fully disarmed” of all its weapons – and vowing there will never be a Palestinian state under his leadership.
Netanyahu’s public rejection of a comprehensive U.S.-backed roadmap intended to end the war in Gaza marks another significant rift with the Trump administration over the future of the embattled Palestinian territory.
In his first direct comments on the proposal, which was touted by President Donald Trump as a historic breakthrough, Netanyahu told his cabinet that he was rebuffing the plan.
“I want to clarify this: Israel rejects the 15-point document,” Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting.
“I have heard people saying, ‘You didn’t say that.’ So here I am saying it again.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Start of the Government Meeting:
“Israel does not accept the 15-point document. The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed, and it will continue to thwart threats against our forces and citizens.”Full… pic.twitter.com/UrVY2FK9wO
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) August 9, 2026
Netanyahu said the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza is contingent upon the complete and verifiable demilitarization of Hamas, a condition he insisted must be met before Israel commits to its side of the agreement.
“The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed,” he stated, adding that the military would “continue to thwart threats against our forces and our citizens.”
He emphasized that the disarmament must be comprehensive, covering everything from heavy weaponry to light arms.
“We are talking about real disarmament, not a fictitious disarmament,” he said.
Last week, the U.S. Board of Peace announced it had secured Hamas’s conditional agreement to a phased disarmament plan.
Hamas, however, has conditioned its implementation on a full Israeli withdrawal and a complete halt to hostilities – terms Netanyahu has now flatly dismissed.
On Sunday, a senior Hamas official responded to Netanyahu’s remarks by calling on the U.S. and mediators to pressure Israel to adhere to the roadmap and “not obstruct the process for internal political and electoral reasons.”
Netanyahu also moved to quash any speculation about a future political settlement that could involve Palestinian statehood.
“As long as I am prime minister, no Palestinian state will be established — not in Gaza and not in the West Bank,” he vowed, signaling a hardline stance that could further complicate diplomatic efforts.
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While Netanyahu acknowledged ongoing discussions with Washington to bridge the differences – noting that “they have ideas; some of them are acceptable to us and some are not” – his explicit dismissal of the U.S. plan underscores the growing friction between the allies.
The disagreement may also reflect the domestic political pressures on Netanyahu, who faces a re-election battle in October and has faced demands from far-right coalition partners to take a harder line against the proposal.
Despite a ceasefire agreed upon in October, Israel has continued to conduct strikes in Gaza, with both sides trading accusations of violations.
The Israeli rejection of the U.S. plan comes against the backdrop of a devastating conflict that Gaza health officials say has killed more than 73,000 people since Oct. 7, 2023, with no clear end in sight.
Muhammad Luqman is Associate Editor at Views News Now. He writes on wide-ranging issues including economy, South Asia, the Middle East, agriculture, economy and innovation. Luqman has worked some of the leading news organizations and won acclaim for his original and research-based works.
