A source familiar with the talks between US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace and senior Hamas officials told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday that it will be determined this week whether or not Hamas will disarm as part of an agreement.
"We’ll see where things are heading - whether there will be voluntary disarmament, or whether it will happen ‘by other means,’ as US President Trump has warned", the source said.
President Trump said in October last year, “If Hamas does not disarm, we will disarm it.”
According to the source, discussions between the Board of Peace and Hamas are ongoing and intensive. "The Trump administration and the Board of Peace have not abandoned the issue of Gaza, even during periods when the focus shifts to Iran or Lebanon", the source told the Post.
Some of the discussions are being conducted through Nikolay Mladenov, the CEO of the Peace Council, who, according to reports, has met with senior Hamas officials in Cairo.
Original plan required surrender of weapons, tunnel demolition
Under the original disarmament plan presented in February by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, Hamas would first relinquish its heavy weapons - defined as “offensive weapons” - and all tunnels would be destroyed. In a second phase, the organization would surrender its light weapons, and all terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip would be prohibited from operating.
During a recent Israeli security cabinet meeting, several ministers called for military action against central Gaza camps if Hamas refuses to disarm. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded that President Trump understands a foreign coalition would not succeed in disarming Hamas, and that Israel would have to do it itself.
“Trump was unable to assemble a coalition to open the Strait of Hormuz, so he also understands that building a coalition to disarm Hamas is even less realistic - we will have to do it,” Netanyahu told the ministers.