Palestinian children, many of whom are from displaced families, sit on the floor as they attend a class at the UNRWA joint school in Deir al-Balah, west of Deir al-Balah, in the center of the Gaza Strip, on December 6, 2025, as part of the first phase of the fragile ceasefire negotiated by the United States between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. (Credit: Bashar Taleb/AFP)
Qatar and Egypt — two of the mediators and guarantors of the Gaza cease-fire — on Saturday called for the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Palestinian territory and the rapid deployment of an international stabilization force to reinforce the fragile truce. These measures are part of the second phase of President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war, triggered by Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
The plan’s first phase, which took effect with the cease-fire on Oct. 10, required the release of both living and deceased hostages held in Gaza in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel. Since Wednesday, only one hostage’s body remains in Gaza. The plan also mandated a partial withdrawal of Israeli troops, who still control roughly half of the territory.
“We are at a critical moment… We cannot yet consider that there is a cease-fire; a cease-fire can only be complete with the full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a return to stability in Gaza,” Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Saturday at a conference in Doha.
“Right now, we — Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, along with the United States — are meeting to advance the next phase,” he added. “And this next phase is also, from our point of view, temporary, pending a durable solution.”
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and his Qatari counterpart “emphasized the importance of continuing efforts to implement the peace agreement in all its stages,” Egypt’s foreign ministry said after a meeting between the two officials on the sidelines of the forum.
Priority: The international force
The second phase of the plan, which has yet to be approved, also calls for the disarmament of Hamas, the creation of a transitional authority, and the deployment of an international stabilization force. Discussions on the force’s composition and participating countries are ongoing, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in Doha. Israel opposes any Turkish role, viewing Ankara as too close to Hamas.
The first task of the force must be “to separate Palestinians from Israelis,” Fidan said. “That must be our main objective. Then we can address other unresolved issues.”
The Egyptian and Qatari foreign ministers urged the “rapid formation” of the force “so that it can fulfill its mandate,” according to Egypt’s foreign ministry. “We need to deploy this force as soon as possible on the ground, because one side — Israel — violates the cease-fire every day,” Abdelatty said. Still, many Arab and Muslim countries remain reluctant to join a mission that could put them in direct confrontation with Palestinians.
The truce remains extremely fragile in the devastated enclave. Israel has repeatedly struck the Gaza Strip—killing several hundred people, according to the local civil defense, which operates under Hamas authority—in operations it says are responses to cease-fire violations by the Palestinian Islamist group.
Turkey’s foreign minister said Saturday that “the disarmament” of Hamas “cannot be the first step in the process.” “We must proceed in the right order; we must be realistic,” he insisted.
No “displacement” of Gazans
Egypt’s foreign minister also reiterated that the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, scheduled to reopen under the truce agreement, would not be used “for the displacement” of Palestinians but solely “to bring in humanitarian and medical aid.”
Egypt, Qatar and six other Muslim-majority countries expressed “deep concern” Friday after Israel announced it would open the crossing exclusively for people to leave Gaza. Cairo quickly denied having agreed to such a measure, stressing that Rafah must operate in both directions.
The Oct. 7 attack killed 1,221 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official data. Israel’s subsequent offensive has killed 70,354 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry figures, which the UN considers reliable.
Humanitarian convoy reaches Rmeish, Ain Ibl, Dibil despite obstacles
