president Donald Trump His Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said on Thursday they were confident Hamas would disarm and enter the second phase of the U.S.-backed Gaza ceasefire plan.

But as regional analysts warn that the terror group has no intention of disarming and could ultimately block Trump’s Gaza plans, Hamas officials have pushed back against Trump’s claims.

Speaking at the 10th Cabinet meeting of his second term, Trump appeared confident that Palestinian Islamist militant groups would lay down their arms.

“Now we want to keep Hamas gunless, right? Disarmed,” Trump said, before adding, “A lot of people said they were never going to disarm. It looks like they’re going to disarm.”

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U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner attend a lunch hosted by the president for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on December 29, 2025. (Joe Reddell/Getty Images)

Witkoff echoed Trump’s assessment and told the president the process was already underway.

“We have driven the terrorists out of there and they will demilitarize. They will because they have no choice,” Vitkov said. “They’re going to give it up. They’re going to give up the AK-47.”

Regional analysts have warned that the terrorist group has no intention of disarming and may even block Trump’s Gaza plans altogether.

National security analyst Kirby Michael said Hamas “does not intend and has never intended to disarm itself.”

“Hamas will do it all possible and creative actions and manipulation to maintain its power and influence in the Gaza Strip,” Professor Kobe Michaelsenior fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgaff Institute told Fox Digital News.

He added that “they didn’t really talk to each other and they didn’t really understand each other,” suggesting there was a divide between the two sides.

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Terrorists celebrate a ceasefire in the central Gaza town of Deir al-Balah on January 19, 2025. (TPS-IL)

“The Israel Defense Forces are the only entity that can disarm Hamas,” Michael said, noting that “no one is willing to send troops to Hamas except Turkey.” international stabilization force To counter Hamas,” referring to the U.N.-mandated planning force that oversees Gaza’s security and demilitarization.

Senior Hamas officials reportedly categorically refuted the White House’s claims on Thursday Times of Israel.

Hamas leader Moussa Abu Marzouk said the group “never agreed to disarmament; no one raised this issue directly with us” and stressed that Hamas still firmly controls Gaza.

The outlet also reported that Abu Mazouq said Hamas would retain a de facto veto over appointments to a newly formed organization. Technical expert committee aims to govern Las Vegas Strip.

The committee announced that as Phase 2 of Trump’s 20 Points The Gaza Peace Plan is designed to oversee civilian affairs in Gaza and manage reconstruction once a ceasefire stabilizes.

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Hamas officials deny Trump’s disarmament call during cease-fire talks in Gaza. (Reuters/Mohammed Salem.)

“We are now in the second phase… Mr. President, for the first time we stand up on your behalf, a technocratic all-Arab government,” Witkov said.

Although the United Nations estimates reconstruction costs will exceed $50 billion, the agency expects to provide basic services to Gaza’s more than 2 million residents.

But Michael warned that new structures would be vulnerable to manipulation by Hamas, which could exploit any new structures.

“They will use the existing bureaucracy, run by technocrats, to control and influence how the government actually operates – the Hezbollah model,” he said.

He added that Hamas had “demanded more time, Israeli troop withdrawal and immediate reconstruction while quietly retaining its military capabilities”.

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“Trump may come to the conclusion that no one but the Israel Defense Forces can disarm Hamas,” Michael said. “It will then become clear that Hamas is the ultimate destroyer and the main obstacle to Trump’s plans for Gaza.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.