Hamas could sign Gaza disarmament deal within days, White House tells mediators

Mediators and the U.S. administration expect Hamas to sign an agreement in the coming days under which the group would hand over its weapons to a committee of Palestinian technocrats under international supervision, according to people briefed on the talks. The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said the country has notified U.S. special envoy Tony Blair of objections to the 15-point Gaza plan. Under the proposed roadmap, all Hamas weapons — including individual rifles — would be placed under the control of a technocrat committee, taken over with international oversight, and then authority over the territory would be transferred to a technocrat government. The plan also envisions the dismantling of tunnels and weapons production sites, the destruction of weapons depots and the end of all military structures in Gaza. Once completed, Hamas would have no role in governing the territory. Hamas has agreed in principle to give up its heavy weapons, the people said, but has refused at this stage to surrender its members' individual arms. The group is linking the disarmament process to the technocrat government's entry into Gaza and the start of its work, the securing of funding for a "Peace Council" and Israeli approval, and is demanding that the agreement also cover other Palestinian factions in the territory.