Trump says Hamas will likely disarm under Gaza ceasefire deal
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President Donald Trump and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said Thursday they believe Hamas will be disarmed under the U.S.-backed Gaza ceasefire plan as it enters its second phase.
But when regional analysts warned that the terror group had no intention of disarming and could ultimately thwart Trump’s Gaza plan, Hamas officials also pushed back on Trump’s claim.
Speaking at the 10th Cabinet meeting of his second term, Trump appeared confident that the Palestinian Islamist militant group would lay down its weapons.
“And now we don’t want to arm Hamas, do we? We want to disarm,” Trump said, adding: “A lot of people said they would never disarm. It looks like they will disarm.”
VALZ SALUTES ‘DAY AND NIGHT’ MIDDLE EAST CHARACTER AS TRUMP’S GAZA PLAN RESHAPE THE REGION
U.S. special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner attend the president’s luncheon for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., on Dec. 29, 2025. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Witkoff echoed Trump’s assessment and told the president the process was already underway.
“We got the terrorists out of there and they will demilitarize. They will because they have no other choice,” Witkoff said. “They’ll give up. They’ll give up AK-47s.”
Regional analysts have warned that the terror group has no intention of disarming and may even block Trump’s Gaza plan altogether.
National security analyst Kobi Michael said Hamas “does not intend and has never intended to disarm itself.”
“Hamas will use every creative maneuver and manipulation possible to maintain its power and influence in the Gaza Strip.” Prof. Kobi MichaelA senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute told Fox News Digital:
“They don’t really talk to each other and they don’t really understand each other,” he said, pointing to the gaps between the two sides.
AFTER TRUMP WISHED ‘THE WAR IS OVER’, HAMAS EXECUTED ITS RIVALS IN GAZA TO REGAIN CONTROL
Terrorists in the town of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza celebrate the ceasefire on January 19, 2025. (TPS-IL)
“The Israel Defense Forces is the only organization that can disarm Hamas,” Michael said, noting that “no one other than Turkey is willing to send troops to the International Stabilization Force to fight Hamas,” referring to the planned force authorized by the United Nations to oversee security and demilitarization in Gaza.
Senior Hamas officials publicly contradicted the White House’s rhetoric on Thursday. Israel Times.
Hamas leader Musa Abu Marzuk said that the group “never agreed to disarmament; no one raised this issue directly with us” and emphasized that Hamas maintains tight control in Gaza.
The report also stated that Abu Marzouk stated that Hamas has a de facto veto right over appointments to the newly established technocratic committee that aims to govern the Strip.
The committee, announced as part of Phase Two of Trump’s 20-item Gaza peace plan, is intended to oversee Gaza’s civilian affairs and manage reconstruction once the ceasefire is stabilized.
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Hamas officials reject Trump’s disarmament claims during ceasefire talks in Gaza. (REUTERS/Muhammad Salem.)
Witkoff said: “We are now in the second phase… Mr. President, for the first time we have formed a technocratic, all-Arab government in your name.”
The agency is expected to provide basic services to more than 2 million people living in Gaza, although the United Nations estimates that reconstruction costs will exceed $50 billion.
But Michael warned that the new structure was vulnerable to manipulation by Hamas and that the group was likely to benefit from any new order.
“They will use the existing bureaucracy, which will be run by technocrats, to control and influence the way this government actually operates (the Hezbollah model),” he said.
He added that Hamas is already “demanding more time, the withdrawal of Israeli troops and immediate reconstruction while quietly preserving its military capabilities.”
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“Trump may conclude that no one can disarm Hamas other than the Israel Defense Forces,” Michael said. “Then Hamas will be revealed to be the ultimate plunderer and a major obstacle in Trump’s Gaza plan.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.
