Gaza ceasefire stalls on Hamas disarmament, Israeli withdrawal disputes nine months in
A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas began October tenth, twenty twenty-five, following President Trump's twenty-point peace plan. The agreement entered a second phase in January twenty twenty-six after Hamas returned the final hostage remains. However, negotiations have stalled significantly over key issues: Hamas disarmament, Israeli military withdrawal, and governance of Gaza. According to reports from early twenty twenty-six, nearly two thousand trucks of aid were needed but only about twenty-three thousand entered Gaza out of fifty-four thousand trucks agreed upon. Deaths continue under the ceasefire, with reports ranging from five hundred to over seven hundred Palestinians killed since October. An international stabilization force and transitional governance committee have been established but deployment remains incomplete. Both sides blame each other for violations: Israel accuses Hamas of refusing to disarm while continuing military activities; Palestinians accuse Israel of ceasefire violations and blocking full aid and troop withdrawal. The Trump administration's Board of Peace continues mediating, but fundamental disagreements persist about the sequence and verification of commitments.
Key facts
- A Trump-backed twenty-point ceasefire plan was agreed by Israel and Hamas in October 2025 and went into effect October 10, 2025
- Phase one required hostage-prisoner exchanges and humanitarian aid; phase two negotiations began January 2026 after the last hostage remains were returned
- Documentation shows approximately 700 to 2,073 documented incidents of violence or violations during the ceasefire period through mid-2026
- Only 23,019 of 54,000 agreed trucks delivering humanitarian aid entered Gaza from October 2025 to January 2026
- Key unresolved issues include Hamas disarmament sequencing, Israeli troop withdrawal, and establishment of transitional governance under the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza
- An International Stabilization Force was authorized by UN Resolution 2803 in November 2025 but deployment remained incomplete as of October 2026
How different outlets framed it
Left-leaning coverage: Left-leaning sources like J Street and Al Jazeera stress that phase one commitments went largely unfulfilled, with documentation of over two thousand Israeli violations, insufficient humanitarian aid delivery, and continued deaths during the ceasefire. They emphasize the humanitarian catastrophe and argue that Israel's refusal to withdraw fully and Hamas's inability to disarm have created a dangerous stalemate where Palestinians remain trapped in deteriorating conditions.
Right-leaning coverage: Right-leaning sources like the FDD's Long War Journal and Israeli media emphasize Hamas's refusal to definitively disarm, continued ceasefire violations by Palestinian groups, and security concerns about any Israeli withdrawal without guaranteed demilitarization. They stress that Hamas remains committed to rebuilding its military capabilities and question whether Hamas can be trusted as a negotiating partner.
Limits of this briefing
The ceasefire agreement's current status as of November 2026 may have changed since the most recent available reports from mid-October. Different parties offer conflicting claims about ceasefire violations, casualty counts, and commitment implementation, making independent verification difficult.
Sources
- CNN: US and Hamas hold first direct talks since Gaza truce as ceasefire process stalls Centre
- Al Jazeera: US declares phase two of Gaza ceasefire, but what did phase one deliver? Centre
- Council on Foreign Relations: A Guide to the Gaza Peace Deal Centre
- J Street: Nine Months In: Assessing the Status of the Gaza Ceasefire Left
- FDD's Long War Journal: Gaza peace plan sees slow progress after Hamas meets in Cairo Right