Netanyahu rejects Palestinian state as Hamas calls for empowerment of Gaza technocratic committee

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel would not allow the rehabilitation of Gaza before it was demilitarized, nor the establishment of a Palestinian state there, while Hamas urged the swift empowerment of the technocratic committee tasked with administering the strip.

Netanyahu made the remarks at a hawkish press conference a day after Israeli forces recovered the remains of the last hostage held in Gaza. The release of about 250 people abducted during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, was among the conditions to be met in the first phase of the ceasefire, which took effect on Oct. 10, 2025.

Monday's return of the body of Ran Gvili, a police officer killed during the Hamas attack, has been seen as potentially clearing the way for progress to the next phase of the truce, which includes the rehabilitation of the enclave.

Signaling reluctance to move swiftly to the next phase of the ceasefire, Netanyahu reiterated that he was pursuing an "absolute victory," with three key elements: the return of all hostages, the disarmament of Hamas, and the demilitarization of Gaza.

"Only in this way can we ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to the State of Israel," he said.

Netanyahu noted Israel would now focus on "completing the two remaining missions: disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza of weapons and tunnels."

"There are only two options: this will be done the easy way or the hard way, but in any case it will be done," he added.

The two demands are expected to complicate progress to the next phase of the ceasefire. Netanyahu is under pressure from Washington to move ahead with the next stage, while far-right, pro-settler partners in his coalition oppose ending the war and have called for the re-establishment of Israeli settlements in Gaza.

Netanyahu also reiterated that Israel would maintain security control over "the entire area from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, including the Gaza Strip."

Regarding recent tensions with Iran, he further warned Iran and its allies, saying that Israel would respond with "unprecedented force" if Iran were to attack.

Earlier in the day, Hamas issued a statement urging the swift empowerment of the technocratic committee tasked with administering the Gaza Strip, the opening of the Rafah crossing in both directions, and the launch of reconstruction efforts in the enclave.

The movement said Israeli authorities "continue to hold hundreds of Palestinian bodies, whether from the Gaza Strip during the war or those kept for decades in numbered graves, and refuse to hand them over to their families or provide information about some of them, constituting a brutal crime."

It called for "an immediate review and a serious international effort" to pressure Israel to release the bodies it is holding, open the Rafah crossing, and allow the entry of heavy equipment necessary to recover the victims' bodies from under the rubble.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian government on Tuesday stressed the need to move to the second phase of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

In a press statement issued after its weekly meeting in Ramallah, the government emphasized the necessity of a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the start of recovery and reconstruction efforts after the handover of the remaining Israeli bodies.

During more than two years of fighting, Israeli bombardment has left Gaza largely in ruins, destroying water and power infrastructure, razing buildings and vast areas, and killing more than 71,500 people, according to Gaza health authorities.