Trump & Netanyahu warn Hamas to accept peace deal or Israel 'will finish the job'

In what they called a "historic day for peace", U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveiled a new peace plan for the Gaza War.

The leaders announced the proposal following a meeting at the White House on Sep. 29, on the tails of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) held in New York, BBC reported.

They also warned Palestinian militant group Hamas to accept the plan, or Israel "will finish the job".

The plan

According to The New York Times, the plan is a 20-point proposal that includes an immediate ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages, of which 24 are believed to be dead and 20 remain alive.

Ceasefire and release of hostages

In return, Israel will return Gaza prisoners, including 250 inmates serving life sentences and 1,700 others detained following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.

Hamas members who surrender their weapons and "commit to peaceful coexistence" would also be pardoned, while those who choose to leave Gaza will be given a safe passage, the leaders said.

The plan further stipulates that Israel would withdraw its troops in the Gaza Strip by a certain degree until all of its hostages, alive or dead, are returned, and then continue to further withdraw once an"International Stabilisation Force" is established to provide internal security.

For now, Israel will maintain a sizeable buffer zone inside Gaza's borders "for the foreseeable future", Netanyahu asserted.

Establishment of Palestinian state

The plan also left the possibility of the establishment of a Palestinian state up in the air, but demanded that Hamas is excluded from any future governance of Gaza.

Any Palestinian government involvement in postwar Gaza must also be only after it undergoes a "reform program", Netanyahu reportedly sought.

Hamas will also see its arms and offensive infrastructure destroyed and be demilitarised under supervision by independent monitors.

According to a full readout of Trump's plan published by Al Jazeera, "New Gaza" would be demilitarised and "fully committed to building a prosperous economy and to peaceful coexistence with their neighbours."

The plan also explicitly said that Israel will not occupy or annex Gaza. Instead, the U.S. will work with Arab and international partners to develop an "International Stabilisation Force" to deploy in Gaza to establish "control and stability".

Should both parties accept the proposal, "full aid will be immediately sent into the Gaza Strip", the plan said, BBC reported.

There will also be an international committee established to temporarily govern the territory, called the Board of Peace.

It will be headed by Trump and include a number of other leaders, including former United Kingdom Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Hamas must accept plan

The proposal was delivered to Hamas officials by the prime minister of Qatar and the chief of Egypt's General Intelligence Service, BBC said.

They have since reportedly pledged to review the proposal in good faith and offer a response.

Netanyahu, on the other hand, warned that Hamas will have to agree to the terms or Israel "will finish the job", echoing a similar statement he made last week at UNGA.

"This can be done the easy way or it can be done the hard way. But it will be done," he said, vowing to act on his threats with or without international support.

Trump also expressed his "full backing" for Israel to eliminate Hamas if they failed to agree to the terms.

Palestinian and regional reaction

Al Jazeera reported that Hamas said it was studying the proposal "in good faith". However, other groups, such as the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group, described it as a "recipe to blow up the region".

The Palestinian Authority said that it welcomed the "sincere and tireless efforts to end the war in Gaza, and affirms its confidences in (Trump's) ability to find a path to peace".

It said it would work with the U.S., regional countries, and partners to end the war in Gaza through a "comprehensive agreement" that guarantees humanitarian aid in Gaza and the release of hostages and prisoners.

It also called for the end of occupation, and for a "just peace" based on the two-state solution, with a "sovereign state of Palestine living side by side with the State of Israel".

Regional governments welcomed the proposal, with a joint statement from the foreign ministries of Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and also Indonesia,  hailing Trump's "sincere efforts to end the war in Gaza", that they believed he would "find a path to peace", and that he would not allow the annexation of the West Bank.

International reactions

World leaders have welcomed the Trump-Netanyahu plan as a major step towards achieving peace in the Middle East.

Blair called the plan "bold and intelligent", while British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said "Hamas should now agree to the plan and end the misery, by laying down their arms and releasing all remaining hostages."

According to BBC, European Council President Antonio Costa also encouraged both parties to agree to the terms laid out "to give peace a genuine chance".

French President Emmanuel Macron praised the proposal, saying that "France stands ready to contribute" to any efforts to end the war.

Rumours of an incoming ceasefire deal had been going around in recent days following the UNGA.

The plan also comes days after Netanyahu lashed out at foreign leaders who recognised a Palestinian state in his speech at UNGA.

The defiant speech claimed that backing a two-state solution was like sending a message to Hamas that "murdering Jews pays off".

Top image via Reuters