Turkey and Qatar have proposed an alternative to disarming the Hamas rebel organization with the aim of confining it to the Gaza Strip.
According to Israeli sources, there is a plan between these two countries, which envisages the transfer of Hamas weapons to a Palestinian Authority that will administer Gaza, or their storage under international supervision.
However, Israel rejects the two-year deadline requested by Qatar and Turkey for the organization's disarmament, insisting on a much shorter period, just a few months.
The same sources add that Tel Aviv strongly opposes the participation of Turkish forces in an international stabilization force in Gaza, also revealing that it is considering the possibility of creating a "political model without Hamas" in Rafah.
According to Israeli intelligence estimates, 75% of Gaza residents no longer support Hamas.
However, these sources warn that the organization is rebuilding its forces and aims to regain full control over the Gaza Strip, exploiting the security vacuum created by the fragile ceasefire.
Israeli officials stressed the need for an independent operational plan for disarmament on Israel's part, without relying on American or international initiatives that might be "soft" on Hamas.
On Saturday, Hamas leader in Gaza, Khalil al-Hiyah, declared that the organization is ready to hand over its weapons to the "state" that will lead the area in the future, on the condition that the Israeli "occupation" ends.
In a statement to the media, he stressed that "Hamas' weapons are linked to the existence of the occupation and aggression; if this ends, the weapons will be transferred to the state."
His office clarified that he was referring to "a future and independent Palestinian state," according to AFP.
