GAZA STRIP — A fragile ceasefire took effect Friday morning, bringing a temporary halt to the latest round of intense conflict between Israel and Hamas. The most significant peace agreement in years, introduced a phased Israeli military withdrawal from parts of the Gaza Strip, while kickstarting a complex hostage and prisoner exchange.
The Israeli military confirmed withdrawal of forces from some of Gaza’s major urban areas, repositioning troops along newly defined deployment lines. However, this does not constitute a full exit. The forces claimed that it would maintain control of roughly half of the enclave’s territory, a strategy Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated would allow Israel to keep a “hold on Hamas from all directions.”
Meanwhile, displaced Palestinian families have started returning to their homes, assessing damage following weeks of Israeli hostilities.
Central to the ceasefire is the Hamas responsibility to release 48 hostages held in Gaza within 72 hours. This group includes 20 individuals confirmed to be alive by the Israeli, with demand of returning the bodies of the remaining 28. A Hamas official noted that recovering the bodies “may take longer, as not all burial sites are known.”
In return, Israel is expected to release 250 Palestinians convicted or suspected of security-related crimes. Additionally, 1,700 adults and 22 minors detained in Gaza during the war are expected to be freed, and the bodies of 360 fighters will be repatriated. The agreement also stipulates a significant increase in the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, with supplies permitted to move freely between the north and south of the territory.
Despite the de-escalation, the underlying tensions remain stark. The current deal is only the first stage of a broader U.S. facilitated plan, with fundamental disagreements persisting. Israel’s central demand—that Hamas disarm—has been flatly refused by the group.
In a televised address, Prime Minister Netanyahu made it clear that the ceasefire is a pause, not a surrender. He vowed that Israeli forces would continue to pressure Hamas until the group is disarmed, and Gaza is demilitarized.
As the process unfolds, the focus for many remains on the imminent return of the hostages, a moment of hope tempered by the recognition that a lasting peace for the war-torn region remains a distant goal.
Background
The Gaza war is an ongoing armed struggle in the Gaza Strip and Israel since October 2023 when Hamas and some other Palestinian militant groups launched an airstrike on Israel. The incident was alleged to have claimed the lives of 1,195 Israelis and foreign nationals, including 815 civilians. 251 people were also taken as hostages in a bid to compel the Israel government to release the Palestine prisoners.
The attacks broke out from the preceding unresolved Israel-Palestinian and Gaza-Israel conflict dating back to the 20th century.
Since 2023, over 63 thousand people in Gaza have lost their lives to Israel offensive operations, with almost half of the victims being children and women, and nothing less than 160 casualties have suffered injuries.
The military struggles have thrown Gaza into a living hell, as an estimated 64,260 individuals have died from traumatic injuries. As of May 2025, a comparable figure for traumatic injury deaths is expected to hit 93,000.