A senior Hamas official, Khalil al-Hayya, announced today that the Palestinian group is declaring an end to the war with Israel, describing it as the start of a “permanent ceasefire.”
According to al-Hayya, the agreement includes the opening of the Rafah crossing in both directions and the release of all Palestinian women and children imprisoned by Israel. He said Hamas had received guarantees from mediators and the U.S. administration that the war has come to a complete end.
On the Israeli side, a government spokesperson stated that the ceasefire will take effect “within 24 hours” following the meeting of Israel’s cabinet, which is expected to conclude with a vote to ratify the truce agreement. A source from the Israeli government told Reuters that the security cabinet meeting has already ended.
However, messages from Hamas remain mixed. Another senior Hamas official, Osama Hamdan, declared that “no Palestinian accepts disarmament”, insisting that the Palestinian people “need weapons and resistance.”
This statement contradicts one of the key conditions of the 20-point peace plan proposed earlier by U.S. President Donald Trump, which includes the disarmament of Hamas as a prerequisite for a lasting solution in Gaza.
