Hamas has agreed to a landmark deal that includes provisions for the complete disarmament of the group and all other armed forces in the Gaza Strip, as well as a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory, United States President Donald Trump announced on Thursday.
Trump described the agreement as a historic breakthrough. “Today, the Board of Peace reached a historic agreement for the complete disarmament of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza,” he said in a post on X, adding that disarmament would come in phases and that Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza as the process was completed.
Ghazi Hamad, a member of Hamas’s negotiating team, confirmed on Friday that the group had accepted the deal, framing the decision as a painful but necessary sacrifice.
“We are making concessions for the sake of our people in the Gaza Strip, to save them from killing and displacement,” Hamad said. “Israel will not intervene in the issue of disarmament.
The National Committee is the body that will undertake this task,” he added, referring to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.
Hamad stressed that Hamas’s commitment to the agreement depended on Israel meeting its own obligations.
“The agreement contains a clear provision stating that Israel must commit to and implement its obligations. If Israel does not implement the agreement, neither will we,” he said.
Hamas officials told Agence France-Presse that a committee established by Trump’s Board of Peace to govern Gaza would oversee the process of storing the group’s weapons.
A diplomatic source told AFP before the deal’s announcement that the plan would create a process for the elimination of all tunnels, weapon depots and weapons production facilities.
The text of the deal has not been publicly released and there was no immediate statement from Israel. Despite the October 2025 ceasefire, violence has continued in Gaza, with Israeli strikes killing at least four people, including two children, on Thursday alone, according to health officials.
Israel continues to control more than half of Gaza, leaving tens of thousands of Palestinians confined to tent camps and heavily damaged neighbourhoods.
Hamas has governed Gaza since 2007 and its disarmament has been the central sticking point in negotiations to advance the peace plan put forward by Trump.
The group had previously rejected disarmament demands from senior leaders including Khaled Mashaal and Musa Abu Marzouk.
(The Whistler)