JERUSALEM: Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Monday that Palestinian group Hamas may soon be given a deadline to lay down its weapons.

“The [Israeli military]will definitely enter and occupy Gaza if Hamas does not disarm,” Smotrich said in an interview with public broadcaster Kan.

Asked how the military would do this, he said, “There are two or three alternatives right now that we are examining.

“We estimate that in the coming days, Hamas will be given an ultimatum to disarm and completely demilitarise Gaza.”

Under the first phase of a US-sponsored ceasefire in Gaza intended to halt two years of war, the Israeli army withdrew to positions behind a so-called Yellow Line, but still controls over half of the territory.

Both Hamas and Israel accuse each other of near-daily ceasefire violations, with the health ministry in Gaza reporting 615 people killed by Israeli forces since the truce started.

The Israeli military claims to have lost five soldiers during the same period.

Legitimacy, US backing

The minister, who is a member of Israel’s security cabinet charged with approving large-scale military operations, explained that if Hamas did not comply with the Israeli ultimatum to disarm, the army “will have international legitimacy and American backing to do it itself, and the IDF [military] is already preparing for this and is making plans”.

The second ceasefire phase, which officially began last month, calls for a gradual withdrawal of the Israeli army and the disarmament of Hamas, which the group has vehemently opposed.

Published in Dawn, February 24th, 2026