Hamas announced on Monday that it will dissolve its government in Gaza, a move that experts say puts pressure on Israel as progress from the US-brokered ceasefire plan has stalled.
Ismail al-Thwabta, the head of the Hamas’ Government Media Office, GMO, said the militant group is ready to turn over governance to the Palestinian technocratic committee that’s meant to lead the enclave under the agreement. Hamas’ statement made no mention of disarmament, one of the key requirements under the second phase of the ceasefire deal, which the group has so far refused.
The announcement changes little on the ground, where Hamas and its security forces maintain firm control of the portion of Gaza not occupied by the Israeli military.
But the symbolic move puts the focus of the ceasefire agreement back on Israel, as President Donald Trump has pressured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to move forward with elements of the plan. That includes the establishment of “pilot areas” in Gaza in which Palestinians would live under the technocratic committee.
Hamas appealed to mediators and the international community to push for Israel to allow the committee to enter Gaza.
“We call on all concerned and relevant parties to immediately accelerate the steps for the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, NCAG, to enter quickly and assume its national and administrative duties and responsibilities, in order to strengthen the steadfastness of our noble Palestinian people and heal their wounds,” al-Thwabta said in a statement at the Al-Aqsa Martyr’s Hospital in Gaza City.
The Board of Peace, which was created to advance the ceasefire agreement, said it had “taken note” of Hamas’ announcement, but that it would wait for “actions, not promises.” In a statement on X, the board called on Hamas to disarm, saying, “The core principle remains one authority, one law and one weapon.”
Muhammad Shehada, a Gaza expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations, described the statement as Hamas’ attempt to “talk over Netanyahu’s head” and appeal to Trump.
“The Israelis are saying that Hamas is refusing to leave government and particularly security, so what they tried to emphasize in this statement is that they’re willing to give up everything vis-a-vis governance from A to Z,” Shehada told CNN.
Hamas sees the committee as “the only way” to put a Palestinian government in Gaza that the international community will recognize without reservations, Shehada said, describing it as a “savvy move.” But he said it likely comes too late.
“Even if that bet pays off – even if Trump is convinced, and even if everything goes according to plan – Israel still has ultimate control over everything in Gaza,” he said. “Israel would still foil NCAG.”
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The NCAG was envisioned in October as part of the US-brokered ceasefire plan to take over governing Gaza after Hamas. But the committee has remained in Cairo, unable to enter Gaza or exercise any measure of authority there.
Al-Thwabta said there was “full reassurance” that Hamas had made “all administrative and legal preparations and arrangements” for the handover of authority to the NCAG. Hamas also said employees within its government would be considered state employees who will be able to continue working under the NCAG. According to the GMO, Gaza’s government has approximately 60,000 employees.
But the timeline for any such transition to the NCAG is unclear. Last week, the Board of Peace that was created to advance the ceasefire plan touted two days of “highly productive” meetings in Cyprus. The board said it is preparing for the NCAG to take over Gaza “once the right conditions are met,” but those conditions were not laid out amid broader difficulties in advancing the deal.
Michael Milshtein, head of the Palestinian Studies Forum at Tel Aviv University, said the announcement from Hamas was not a surprise. Instead, he described it as an effort by Hamas and mediators to change the formula.
“Hamas has clearly said that the move was intended to pave the way for a breakthrough,” Milshtein told CNN. The key mediators – Qatar, Turkey and Egypt – are trying to present a unified front to Trump to show him that the deal is progressing, he said, and that US pressure will grow on Israel to implement the next stages of the agreement.
The 20-point Gaza ceasefire plan, which went into effect in October, has stalled, with key elements of the agreement unrealized. The first phase of the agreement called for a complete end to fighting in Gaza, but Israel has carried out near-daily strikes in the enclave. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, more than 1,000 people have been killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza since the ceasefire began.
Under the second phase of the agreement, instead of withdrawing from Gaza, Israel’s military has seized more of the territory – with the stated goal to occupy approximately 70% of the strip –forcing Gaza’s two million Palestinians into an ever-shrinking sliver of land. An international force meant to secure parts of Gaza – and allow for the NCAG to begin governing – has yet to materialize. And Hamas has instead reasserted its power in parts of Gaza not occupied by Israel, recently executing a Palestinian accused of collaborating with Israel.
CNN
