Netanyahu's "Easy Way Or Hard Way" Warning On Disarming Hamas

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday reiterated that Hamas will be "disarmed" either the "easy way or the hard way."

"Our opposition to a Palestinian state in any territory has not changed. Gaza will be demilitarised, and Hamas will be disarmed, the easy way or the hard way," Netanyahu said at a weekly cabinet meeting. 

His statements come a day before the UN Security Council's vote on a resolution endorsing US President Donald Trump's peace plan, which would mandate a "Board of Peace" in Gaza to address issues including post-war reconstruction and economic recovery.

Addressing the alleged "non-demilitarisation" of the Hamas-controlled parts of Gaza, Netanyahu said that "there will be no such thing."

Trump's 20-step plan for a ceasefire calls for the demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip and a commitment for Hamas to disarm. However, a big question that remains in the plan is how Hamas, which has not fully accepted this step, would disarm.  

"Even in the 20-point plan, and in everything else, this territory will be demilitarised, and Hamas will be disarmed, the easy way or the hard way. This is what I said, and this is what President Trump also said," Netanyahu added. 

Regarding the Palestinian state, he said, "Our opposition to a Palestinian state anywhere west of the Jordan River exists and has not changed even a bit." 

"I have been pushing back against these attempts for decades, and I do so against external as well as internal pressure. I don't need affirmations, tweets, or lectures from anyone," Netanyahu added. 

Netanyahu Faces Backlash Over Palestinian Statehood

Netanyahu had come in for criticism from coalition members, including far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who had accused him of failing to respond to a recent wave of recognition of Palestinian statehood by Western countries. 

"Formulate immediately an appropriate and decisive response that will make it clear to the entire world -- no Palestinian state will ever arise on the lands of our homeland," Smotrich urged Netanyahu on X.

Replying to that during the cabinet meeting, Trump said, "Our opposition to a Palestinian state anywhere west of the Jordan River exists and has not changed even a bit." 

"I don't need affirmations, tweets, or lectures from anyone," Netanyahu added. 

Other ministers likewise expressed their opposition to Palestinian statehood, though none explicitly referred to the resolution.

"Israel's policy is clear: no Palestinian state will be established," Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X Sunday.

Foreign Minister Gideon Saar also said on X that the country would "not agree to the establishment of a Palestinian terror state in the heart of the Land of Israel."

Far-right firebrand and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir went even further, calling the Palestinian identity an "invention."

The first phase of the US-backed ceasefire deal saw the release of the last 20 living Israeli hostages and nearly all of the 28 dead captives held by Palestinian militants.

In exchange, Israel freed nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and returned 330 bodies.

(With inputs from AFP)