Hamas Signals Limited Police Weapons Handover; Qassam Brigades Military Arsenal Explicitly Excluded

On April 19, 2026, reports emerged that Hamas officials indicated the group was prepared to hand over thousands of automatic rifles and small weapons belonging to Gaza's police force and internal security services as a goodwill gesture. However, this proposal explicitly excluded the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades — Hamas's military wing — which would retain all its rockets, drones, anti-tank missiles, and tunnel network maps. Hamas officials said they had coordinated with other Gazan security agencies on transferring some governmental control to the Board of Peace's technocratic committee. The IDF rejected any proposal to merely transfer policing weapons while the Qassam Brigades retained full military capability, calling it 'a cosmetic gesture, not disarmament.' The Jerusalem Post cited a New York Times report on the proposal, noting that Gaza residents caught between the parties expressed desire for full disarmament: 'We want Hamas to give up their weapons and the Israelis to withdraw.' The limited handover proposal was widely interpreted as a negotiating tactic rather than substantive progress on Phase Two.