Gaza Board of Peace official says plan is still operative

A tent camp sheltering displaced Palestinians in Gaza City. (Reuters)

• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected an Israeli withdrawal until Hamas is “genuinely disarmed”
• Board of Peace official says discussions with Israel are continuing

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan is still operative ​and discussions with Israel are continuing, a Board of Peace official said on Monday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected an Israeli withdrawal until the Palestinian militant group Hamas is “genuinely disarmed.”
Netanyahu on Sunday restated his rejection of the Gaza ‌plan in televised ‌remarks to his ​right-wing ‌government. ⁠The move ​came even as ⁠Israel’s military has effectively halted attacks in the territory under US pressure.
“The plan is very much still operative and advancing,” the official told Reuters.
“The process is based on implementation and verification on the ground. ⁠Discussions with Israel are continuing, ‌and the framework is ‌designed so that each ​stage only moves ‌forward once the required commitments have been ‌met,” the official said.
Trump announced last month that there had been a breakthrough in his plan to end the war, to which both ‌Israel and Hamas agreed, with Israeli forces withdrawing as Hamas disarms and ⁠an ⁠International Stabilization Force working with a new Palestinian police force to secure the enclave.
Complications have quickly surfaced with questions over the plan’s timeline.
“The roadmap is between the Board of Peace and Hamas, and discussions with Israel are continuing. Israel is not being asked to rely on trust or to make irreversible moves before verified ​steps are taken ​on the ground,” the official said.