Knesset backs Trump’s Gaza proposal in first vote
Shafaq News – Middle East
Israel’s Knesset advanced a proposal on Wednesday to adopt US President Donald Trump’s 20-point “Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict,” approving it in a first reading with 39 votes in favor and none against, according to Israeli media.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid introduced the proposal, while most lawmakers from the governing coalition—including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—remained absent from the session in what Israeli media described as an apparent political boycott, as even the few coalition members who entered the chamber, among them Likud MK Tali Gotliv, chose not to take part in the vote.
Trump’s plan took effect on October 10, outlining steps to end hostilities, disarm Hamas, establish a temporary administrative authority in Gaza, deploy a multinational security force to replace Israeli troops, launch reconstruction, and facilitate an additional Israeli withdrawal from the so-called Yellow Line.
Read more: Gaza Ceasefire - Phase 1: What we know so far
A clause referencing a possible pathway toward Palestinian statehood—without a defined timeline—has drawn objections from several coalition and government members who reject any move they believe could lead to such an outcome.
Lapid told lawmakers the vote was an opportunity “to tell President Trump, to tell the world, to tell ourselves, that we are uniting around a common goal,” while criticizing Netanyahu for choosing to boycott the session, calling it “a shame.”
Since the ceasefire began, Hamas has released 20 living hostages and returned the remains of 28 others. By Wednesday afternoon, the bodies of two captives were still pending return, although Hamas later said it had transferred one additional body that had not yet been identified. Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes have continued across the Strip, with the Gaza Health Ministry reporting 360 fatalities and 922 injuries since October 11, bringing the cumulative toll since October 7, 2023, to 70,117 deaths and 170,999 wounded.
Read more: The War that Never Ends: A century in Palestine
Following its initial approval, the draft now goes to the “Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee” for detailed examination before its second and third readings.
