Peace Council: Gaza negotiations advance, with no role for Hamas after its disarmament
Cairo, Jerusalem, Gaza – Reuters, AFP – Six Palestinians, including two children and a woman, were killed and others injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, as mediators launched a new round of talks with Hamas in an effort to achieve full implementation of a war-ending plan.
For his part, the Gaza Peace Council announced that “negotiations to implement the agreement are ongoing and progressing,” clarifying that the roadmap for implementing the agreement includes the dismantling of all combat weapons, heavy and light, without exception, as well as the destruction of tunnels, weapons depots, and facilities for producing combat weapons.
The council stated in a press release that “at the end of the process, Hamas will have no administrative role in Gaza, whether openly or behind the scenes,” emphasizing that the committee responsible for governing Gaza “will possess full authority, in accordance with the principle of one authority, one law, and one weapon.”
It further stressed that “every step taken by one party enables the other party to take the next step.”
This comes as sources on Israeli Channel 13 revealed progress in talks regarding Hamas’s announcement to disarm and relinquish its control over Gaza in favor of an international stabilization force.
The sources added that discussions are also underway to hold a signing ceremony for the understandings in Egypt in the coming days, noting that progress had been made in recent days thanks to mediation pressure from Egypt and Qatar.
They added that the talks are being held in Cairo, where a high-level Hamas delegation is present, under Egyptian sponsorship and with mediation from Qatar and Turkey.
The sources pointed to differences over “minor” points and noted that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is pushing for progress in the announcement.
Israel currently controls approximately 64% of the Gaza Strip, while most of its population, numbering around two million, live in a narrow coastal strip under Hamas’s control, residing in temporary tents or damaged buildings and facing dire conditions.
Meanwhile, Hamas has not yet officially announced its acceptance of disarming, while Israel has affirmed its intention to expand its control over Gaza to cover 70% of the strip, where it continues to carry out near-daily military airstrikes.
Trump’s plan included the creation of a “Peace Council,” an inclusive international body responsible for implementing the peace framework. The council would also oversee an international stabilization force, among other tasks.
On the ground, separate Israeli airstrikes on areas in the strip killed at least six people, including two children, a woman, and three men.
The military announced that it targeted Hamas operatives, without providing further details.
