Palestinian children examine the rubble of a residential house in Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza Strip, on July 1, 2025, following overnight Israeli strikes. (Credit: Eyad Baba/AFP)
In a message posted overnight on his Truth Social platform, U.S. President Donald Trump said Israel has “accepted the necessary conditions to finalize a 60-day cease-fire,” during which all parties would work toward ending the war in Gaza.
According to Trump, the decision followed a “long and productive meeting” on Tuesday between Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, and Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump added that Qatar and Egypt — key mediators in the conflict — would present the final proposal to Hamas.
“ I hope, for the good of the Middle East, that Hamas takes this Deal, because it will not get better — IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE,” Trump said on Truth Social.
More than 18 months after the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war, renewed calls for an agreement with Hamas have emerged in Israel and abroad, especially following the recent cease-fire announced by Trump between Israel and Iran.
At this stage, there is no indication Hamas is willing to accept the proposed terms. It also remains unclear whether the deal addresses the core sticking point: Hamas’s demand for a U.S. guarantee that a 60-day truce would lead to a permanent end to the war. According to the news site Axios, previous U.S.-Qatari-Israeli proposals fell short of Hamas’s expectations.
Withdrawal, dismantling and exile of Hamas
Axios reported that the draft agreement would allow Israel and Hamas to use the 60-day truce to negotiate both an end to the war and a framework for governing postwar Gaza. For Israel, any long-term cease-fire must include Hamas’s withdrawal from power, dismantling of its military wing, and the exile of top commanders.
Israel also wants Gaza administered by local Palestinian officials unaffiliated with Hamas or the Palestinian Authority, and an active role for Arab states such as Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
A senior Israeli official told Axios that without progress on a hostage deal, Israel would escalate its offensive. “We will do to Gaza City and the central refugee camps what we did to Rafah,” the official warned.
Separately, an Israeli source told Haaretz that the proposal does not contain an explicit Israeli commitment to end the war but includes “strong guarantees” on the matter. The draft states that if no agreement is reached during the 60-day period, mediators will work to continue negotiations “under certain conditions.”
“It’s not just about the wording,” the source said. “It’s the tone, which signals to Hamas how strongly the Americans want — and are able — to pressure Israel in this direction.”
An 'opportunity' to free hostages
Responding to these developments, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar urged Israel not to miss an opportunity to secure the hostages' release. “A large majority in the government and among the public supports the hostage deal. If the opportunity arises, it must not be missed,” he wrote on X.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military on Monday ordered civilians to evacuate Gaza City, signaling an expanded ground offensive. The assault on the strip continues: Gaza’s civil defense agency said Israeli forces killed at least 100 people Tuesday. According to Palestinian authorities, more than 56,640 people — mostly civilians — have been killed in Israel’s war on Gaza since October 2023.
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