Trump's Gaza Plan Faces Wall-to-Wall Opposition in Israel

Within hours of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announcing Israel's rejection of a 15-point roadmap for postwar Gaza, Nikolay Mladenov, Director-General of the Board of Peace - a Trump-led body tasked with overseeing Gaza's reconstruction - explained why Israel should reconsider.

Mladenov's central argument centered on verification. He stressed that "last of all Israel" Would be required to act before verified steps occurred on the ground. Under the plan, the IDF would hold position at an agreed line and refrain from firing unless facing genuine threats. The line would advance only after individual sectors were cleared and weapons were certified, stored, and disabled. Should later commitments go unmet, "the process stops."

Weapons would be stored in warehouses within Gaza and rendered unusable by the Board's National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, backed by an international force. Tunnel destruction would be handled by contractors, though Mladenov acknowledged the work would take over a decade - another reason he said Israel needed the Board's involvement to accelerate progress.

On the question of personal arms Gazans might retain, Mladenov clarified the framework covered all weapons categories. He acknowledged Gaza is controlled through force but stressed that rifles and other arms must transfer to civilian authority.

Regarding the involvement of Turkey and Qatar - governments Israelis oppose including - Mladenov stated they were essential to Hamas's agreement. He likened the necessity to speaking with adversaries when required, emphasizing the verification mechanism would be American-led and backed by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Morocco.

When pressed on whether Hamas would genuinely disarm, Mladenov offered a direct response: "I'm not building any of this on the basis of trust. And none of us are." He acknowledged risks while maintaining the process included safeguards to halt progress if conditions weren't met.

Across Israel's political spectrum - from Netanyahu to Bennett, Lieberman, Eisenkot, and Golan - opposition remained uniform. All cited the same reason: with elections scheduled in 79 days, no politician wanted to appear as a Hamas sympathizer or supporter of withdrawals, regardless of timing.