WEST PALM BEACH: US President Donald Trump on Sunday urged Hamas to move forward with disarmament under his plan for postwar Gaza, and said members of his so-called “Board of Peace” had pledged $5 billion to the Palestinian territory’s reconstruction.
“Very importantly, Hamas must uphold its commitment to Full and Immediate Demilitarization,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform, ahead of a February 19 meeting of the board in Washington.
Disarmament is a key part in the second phase of the US-brokered ceasefire plan sealed in October between Israel and the Palestinian militant group to end the war triggered by Hamas’s attack on Israel in October 2023.
The United Nations endorsed the plan in November.
The second phase stipulates that Israeli forces gradually withdraw from Gaza and Hamas should disarm, with an international stabilization force deployed to ensure security.
