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Hamas has agreed to a proposal announced by United States President Donald Trump to end the war with Israel, with the agreement involving the group handing over its weapons to a Palestinian governing body and the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
The announcement marks a major step in efforts to advance the next phase of a ceasefire arrangement, although Israel has yet to formally respond to the deal.
Shortly before Hamas confirmed its acceptance, an Israeli political source told AFP that the proposal did not fully meet Israel’s demands for the complete demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip. The source said Israel considers the removal of Hamas weapons from Gaza a key condition for any long-term settlement.
“Hamas’s complete disarmament” was described by Trump as a critical part of establishing a new Palestinian administration in Gaza. Under the proposal, Hamas officials said a committee created by Trump’s Board of Peace would supervise the storage and management of the group’s weapons.
Ghazi Hamad, a member of Hamas’s negotiating team, said the group had made concessions to protect Palestinians in Gaza.
“We are making concessions for the sake of our people in the Gaza Strip, to save them from killing and displacement,” Hamad said. He added that Israel would not be involved in the disarmament process, saying the National Committee for Administration of Gaza (NCAG) would handle the responsibility.
The Board of Peace confirmed that Hamas had accepted a “detailed Roadmap” for implementing the next phases of the ceasefire agreement, adding that attention had now shifted to carrying out the plan.
Nickolay Mladenov, the Board’s high representative for Gaza, said the agreement followed months of difficult negotiations but warned that implementation and verification would determine its success.
“Withdrawal must move in lockstep with decommissioning,” Mladenov said.
The proposed roadmap includes the removal of weapons, tunnels and production facilities, with mediators expected to establish a verification system to monitor compliance.
Egypt is expected to host a meeting involving ceasefire mediators, including the United States, Qatar and Turkey, to discuss the next phase of the agreement.
Despite the ceasefire, violence has continued in Gaza, with health officials reporting that Israeli strikes killed at least four people, including two children, on Thursday.
