Akiva Van KoningsveldThe U.S. State Department told JNS on Wednesday that demilitarizing Hamas remains “a central challenge” to implementing the U.S. peace plan for the Gaza Strip. “The demilitarization of Hamas remains a central challenge—one that we are hopeful we can overcome,” according to the statement. As long as Hamas remains armed, he emphasized, no alternative civilian body would be able to operate. Earlier this week, the prime minister told Knesset lawmakers that Phase 2 of the Trump plan entailed “not reconstruction” but demilitarization. “The resistance and its weapons are the ummah’s [Islamic nation] honor and pride,” the senior terrorist told an anti-Israel summit in Istanbul.