US Hints at Amnesty for Hamas in Gaza Disarmament Deal

The United States government believes that any plan for Hamas to disarm in Gaza will be linked to some form of amnesty for the group's militants, according to a U.S. official. The statement signals a potential pathway forward in the ongoing conflict, tying security goals to political solutions.

Figure 1: Security officials investigate a crater in Kfar Chabad, Israel, following a missile attack claimed by Hamas, highlighting the ongoing conflict.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, made the remarks as the remains of the last Israeli hostage held by Hamas were returned. Both Israel and the U.S. have been pushing for Hamas to disarm as a key component of a broader strategy to redevelop Gaza.

US Confident in Disarmament Plan

American officials are reportedly confident that Hamas will ultimately agree to lay down its arms as part of a comprehensive agreement. The anonymous source emphasized that disarmament is a critical part of the proposed deal.

"We are listening to many of their people talk about disarming. We think they're going to," the official said. "If they don't disarm, then they've breached the deal. We think disarmament comes along with some sort of amnesty and candidly we think we have a very, very good program to disarm."

The Israeli embassy in Washington has not yet commented on whether Israel would support an amnesty for Hamas members in exchange for their weapons.

Trump's 20-Point Plan for Gaza

The framework for this potential arrangement is outlined in President Donald Trump's 20-point plan for Gaza. The plan details a sequence of events and conditions for resolving the conflict and moving toward reconstruction.

Key components of the plan include:

• Hostage Return: The process begins only after all hostages are returned.

• Amnesty Condition: Hamas members who commit to peaceful co-existence and decommission their weapons will be granted amnesty.

• Safe Passage: Members of Hamas who choose to leave Gaza will be provided with safe passage to other receiving countries.

Final Hostage's Remains Returned

The discussion around the plan coincided with a major development on Monday, when the Israeli military announced the recovery of the last remaining hostage. The remains of police officer Ran Gvili, who was held in Gaza for over 840 days, have been formally identified and will be returned to his family for burial.