ISTANBUL
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar reiterated his condemnation of Hamas and other armed groups Thursday, invoking a narrative of victimhood as he endorsed US President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan during the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace in Washington, DC.
Saar claimed that Israel had endured “a difficult war for two years on seven different fronts,” describing it as one fought “against pure evil: Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah.”
Since the start of the Gaza genocide in October 2023, Israel has carried out airstrikes in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran.
Referring to the Oct. 7, 2023 events, when Hamas and other Palestinian groups launched a surprise, coordinated attack from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel, Saar said: “That terrible day will not be forgotten. And we must act to ensure it never repeats itself.”
Saar alleged that previous plans for Gaza failed because they did not address “the core issues: terror, hate, incitement and indoctrination.”
“At the heart of President Trump’s comprehensive plan are the disarmament of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, and deradicalization of Palestinian society there,” he said, adding that Israel supports the plan and will work toward its success.
“Hamas must be disarmed,” Saar said.
He also stressed the need for a “fundamental deradicalization process.”
The Board of Peace was established within the framework of efforts toward a peaceful settlement in the Gaza Strip. It seeks to promote peacemaking around the world. Washington has said additional states have since joined the initiative.
A US-backed ceasefire agreement has been in place in Gaza since Oct. 10, halting Israel’s two-year onslaught that has killed more than 72,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 171,000 since October 2023.
Despite the ceasefire, Israeli forces have committed hundreds of violations through shelling and gunfire, killing 611 Palestinians and injuring 1,630, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.