Gaza Envoy Presses Netanyahu on Hamas Arms Deal
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- Nikolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace's high representative for Gaza, met Israeli PM Netanyahu on Monday in what the board called "constructive and detailed" talks focused on a Hamas disarmament deal aiming for complete weapons decommissioning and a transition to civilian governance.
- Mladenov urged Netanyahu to stop Israeli strikes in Gaza, with two people familiar with the meeting confirming the envoy and senior adviser Aryeh Lightstone are pressing Israel to halt attacks alongside the disarmament push.
- US President Trump announced the disarmament agreement late Thursday; the deal is part of a broader ceasefire framework reached last year calling for Israel to end military operations and Hamas to halt militant activity.
- Israel said it has "serious security concerns" with the agreement and shared those concerns with the US, then escalated strikes — local health officials reported 17 people killed overnight from Saturday into Sunday, though no airstrikes were recorded Monday.
- Israeli attacks have killed 1,250 people in Gaza since the October ceasefire deal that ended two years of major fighting; the Gaza Health Ministry puts total war deaths at 73,375, though its figures do not distinguish civilians from combatants.
- Hamas-led militants triggered the war by attacking southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to figures cited in the source.
Why it matters: Israel has publicly flagged serious security concerns with the Trump-brokered disarmament framework while simultaneously escalating strikes that have killed 1,250 people since the October ceasefire — meaning the Board of Peace's envoy is pushing a deal that Israel is actively resisting on the ground, not just at the negotiating table. The halt in airstrikes on Monday offers the first tangible sign the pressure may be working.
