Report: US-led plan would see Hamas disarm, senior figures exit Gaza

The US and key Gaza mediators have begun quiet talks with Hamas on a plan to gradually disarm the terror group and dismantle its military infrastructure in the Strip, Channel 12 news reports.

According to the report, discussions involving the US alongside Qatar, Turkey and Egypt have been underway for roughly two to three weeks. The plan presented to Hamas reportedly calls for the immediate destruction of heavy weapons, tunnels, arms-production sites and terror infrastructure, followed by a prolonged, phased process to collect and dismantle personal weapons held by Hamas operatives and other gunmen.

Under the proposal, those who agree to hand over their weapons would be offered either safe passage out of Gaza or integration into the security forces of a future Palestinian technocratic government tasked with running the Strip, the report says. In parallel, the US would seek to establish a Palestinian police force subordinate to that technocratic administration, with exclusive authority over the use of force.

Channel 12 reports that the plan also envisions a gradual withdrawal by the IDF from positions inside Gaza, including a phased pullback from the Yellow Line, contingent on progress in disarmament. Reconstruction efforts, as outlined by senior White House adviser Jared Kushner in Davos earlier today, would likewise be tied to compliance with the weapons handover.

The Channel 12 report follows a similar Ynet report published two days ago, citing Palestinian sources and the Saudi Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, which said that several senior Hamas commanders are expected to depart the Strip as part of arrangements linked to the next phase of the ceasefire and the entry of a technocratic administration.

Those sources told Ynet that the emerging framework is based on Hamas figures exiting Gaza in parallel with the technocratic committee assuming control, with Egyptian intelligence mediating the process. Turkey is said to be the primary destination under discussion, though no final decisions have been made and some Hamas commanders have reportedly refused to leave.

Earlier this month, a US official and two Arab diplomats told The Times of Israel that Washington had been in talks with Mideast mediators Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, which have assured Washington that Hamas will agree to a gradual disarmament plan that would begin with the terror group giving up its heavy weaponry and the launch of a “buy-back” program for lighter weapons.

The three sources said that the goal is to begin implementing the program in the coming weeks.

Jacob Magid contributed to this report.