The delicate ceasefire in Gaza is facing serious jeopardy, according to statements from Hamas, which accuses Israel of persistent violations that undermine the agreement’s integrity. This rising tension centers on the potential collapse of the first phase and the inability to move toward the far more complicated second stage of the truce.
Khalil al-Hayya, the group’s chief in Gaza, issued a video statement on Sunday, stressing the gravity of the situation. He formally confirmed the death of senior Hamas commander Raed Saad in an Israeli strike the day before.
Al-Hayya warned that “The continued Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement … and latest assassinations that targeted Saad and others threaten the viability of the agreement.”
He then directed an appeal to the key international mediators, specifically calling upon US President Donald Trump, to intervene. The demand was clear: oblige Israel to respect and commit to the terms of the fragile ceasefire.
The initial phase of the October truce was designed to halt hostilities, facilitate the exchange of living captives, prisoners, and the remains of the deceased, and ensure the unrestricted passage of critical humanitarian aid into the besieged coastal enclave.
Only upon the satisfactory completion of those conditions would the second phase commence. This final, ambitious step involves an Israeli military withdrawal, the formal disarmament of Palestinian factions, and an official end to the devastating war.
However, authorities in Gaza claim that since the truce took hold on October 10, the Israeli military has continued daily attacks. They report nearly 800 strikes, resulting in close to 400 deaths, while simultaneously restricting the promised free flow of aid.
Meanwhile, a crucial point of contention remains the remains of Israeli captive Ran Gvili. Israel asserts the return of his body is a necessary precondition for engaging in the second phase of the negotiations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu adopted a defiant stance on Sunday, directly addressing the killing of the Hamas commander. He instead accused Hamas of violating the very principles that underpinned the Trump-brokered peace plan.
Netanyahu described the slain Saad as “the primary figure in charge of Hamas’s effort to build up its strength and arm itself within the Strip,” accusing him of “conducting remilitarisation.”
“[Saad] was working to replenish weaponry and smuggle weaponry,” the Prime Minister stated. He argued these alleged actions represented “a total violation of the principles Hamas supposedly accepted by adopting the Trump plan.”
Reports from Israeli media outlets suggest growing friction between the Netanyahu administration and the US government, the ceasefire’s primary sponsor. Washington is reportedly pressuring Israel to advance swiftly to the second phase, a move Israel insists must wait until Gvili’s remains are repatriated.
“We are nearing the end of the first phase,” Netanyahu commented, acknowledging the need to return Gvili. He maintained that his government is undertaking “a great deal on this matter, including activities carried out here, and also in Cairo and in other places.”
In a clear message directed toward external pressure, the Prime Minister emphatically stressed Israel’s sovereign right to determine its own security path. “Our policy will remain very forceful, and it is an independent one,” he asserted. “We decide on the actions; we decide on the responses. We decide what needs to be done to ensure the security of Israel and the security of Israeli soldiers.”
