Israel Rules Out Palestinian State as UN Security Council Sets Vote on U.S. Gaza Plan

Overview

• Defense Minister Israel Katz declared there will be no Palestinian state and said the IDF will hold strategic positions as Gaza is fully demilitarized.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated opposition to Palestinian statehood and vowed Hamas would be disarmed “the easy way or the hard way.”
• The Security Council is scheduled to vote Monday on a U.S.-draft resolution backing President Trump’s 20-point plan, authorizing a multinational stabilization force and a transitional authority with support from eight regional states.
• Coalition hardliners Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich publicly pressed Netanyahu to reject the UN text, reinforcing the government’s stance.
• UNIFIL accused Israeli forces of firing near peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, which the IDF called unintentional and placed under investigation.