Rubio: US hopes for breakthrough on Hamas disarmament in coming days

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday, April 27, that there have been “some promising signs” in recent days regarding a potential agreement on the demilitarisation of Hamas, while cautioning that tangible results are still required.

Speaking in an interview with Fox News, according to a transcript released by the US State Department, Rubio emphasised that progress has been made despite conflicting public messaging.

“We’re very focused on that. There’s been some progress made on that despite public announcements from Hamas. But ultimately we have to see it happen, and we’re hopeful in the next few days we may have good news on that,” he said.

Rubio noted the involvement of regional mediators in the process, highlighting the roles of Egypt and Türkiye.

“I know that our partners in Egypt and Türkiye have been involved in this process,” he said. “There’s been some promising signs over the weekend that we’re getting closer to an agreement with regard to them demilitarising. But that has to happen. The entirety of this project only works if Hamas is demilitarised. Until that happens, all of it is in question.”

He declined to say whether the United States would support Israel resuming military operations if no agreement is reached.

“Let’s hope we can avoid that. That’s not the outcome we want,” Rubio said.

The comments come after reports that, in mid-April, the United States and Hamas held their first direct talks since the Gaza ceasefire reached in October, according to two Hamas sources. The discussions were part of broader efforts to advance the fragile US-brokered agreement.

By Tamilla Hasanova