Netanyahu: Israel won't withdraw from Gaza until Hamas is disarmed

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Tuesday that Israeli forces will maintain their positions in Gaza until Hamas is fully disarmed. Speaking via social media, Netanyahu highlighted discrepancies between Israel's stance and the Trump administration's approach to a recently announced deal aimed at disarming the militant group.

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The Trump administration sent us a draft. We did not agree. It is not our draft. We sent our comments. This is our position. We stand firm on our interests, I believe both wisely and resolutely.

The proposed agreement stipulated that Hamas would begin disarming concurrently with Israel halting strikes and commencing withdrawal from Gaza. This was part of an October ceasefire agreement that paused major military operations but has since stalled on other fronts. Netanyahu, however, insisted that disarmament must precede any withdrawal, asserting that Israeli forces would continue to take "whatever is necessary to protect themselves, our territory, and our citizens."

"The Trump administration sent us a draft. We did not agree. It is not our draft. We sent our comments," Netanyahu stated. "This is our position. We stand firm on our interests, I believe both wisely and resolutely."

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The only crime of these martyrs was that they remained steadfast and resilient in their homes, believing that these homes would protect them.

Earlier the same day, Palestinians held a mass funeral for over 100 bodies recovered from a devastating Israeli strike in Gaza City in 2023. The November 22, 2023, attack flattened a residential block, killing over 300 people. Recovery efforts, initially hampered by the chaos of war, have slowly continued under a fragile ceasefire, with first responders recently unearthing the remains of 112 victims, including 40 children, from beneath the rubble. The Gaza Health Ministry reports that Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 73,377 Palestinians since the October 7 Hamas attack, which killed around 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.

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For the missing, it's as if their bodies had evaporated without a trace.