Hamas Official Denies Group Ever Agreed to Disarm

“It never happened; not for a single moment did we talk about the surrender of weapons,” Abu Marzouk said.

By United with Israel Staff

A senior Hamas official this week openly rejected claims that the terror group ever agreed to disarm, underscoring Israel’s long-standing warning that Hamas treats negotiations as tactical pauses rather than binding commitments.

Speaking to Al Jazeera on Wednesday, Mousa Abu Marzouk said Hamas “never agreed to hand over” its weapons and insisted the issue was never discussed with the United States or mediators.

“We have not [even] discussed the weapons yet, no one has spoken to us directly about it. We haven’t spoken with the American side or the mediators on this issue, so we can’t talk about what it means or what the goal is,” Abu Marzouk said.

According to Abu Marzouk, the October agreement that produced the Gaza ceasefire involved only “a framework plan to end the war,” adding that “the issue of handing over our weapons was not discussed at all.”

When pressed on reports that Hamas committed to disarm as part of phase two of the Trump administration’s 20-point Gaza plan, Abu Marzouk categorically denied it.

“It never happened; not for a single moment did we talk about the surrender of weapons, or any formula about destroying, surrendering, or disarmament,” he said.

Abu Marzouk also dismissed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statements regarding Israel’s war objectives, including the recovery of the body of the final Israeli hostage from Gaza.

“Netanyahu cannot boast about the return of Israeli prisoners, because they were all returned under an agreement and on Hamas’s terms,” Abu Marzouk said.

The Hamas official’s remarks directly contradict statements by President Donald Trump, who warned last month that Hamas would have “hell to pay” if it failed to disarm and said the group had “agreed to it” when it accepted the October truce.

A U.S. official reiterated that position on Monday, saying Hamas “signed an agreement – they don’t have a choice,” and warning that “if they decide to play games, then obviously President Trump will take other actions.”

Israeli officials have consistently argued that Hamas exploits ceasefires to regroup while denying obligations it previously implied or accepted—a pattern the group’s own senior leadership has now publicly reinforced.