Fears of renewed Gaza war as Hamas disarmament talks stall

They told the BBC that Israel was insisting on moving to the second phase of President Trump's 20-point plan, which focuses on disarmament, before completing the obligations of the first phase.

The officials say the specific demands of Hamas include an end to Israeli shelling, incursions and other military operations in Gaza.

The armed group also wants the amount of aid to increase, the entry of temporary housing units and heavy lifting equipment to clear rubble and an increase in the number of Palestinian patients and travellers allowed to exit via Egypt's Rafah Crossing. Israel says it restricts which goods are allowed in and out of Gaza for security reasons.

While Hamas continues to refer to the terms of the document that it signed with Israel in Sharm el-Sheikh in October, which focused on the first stage of the ceasefire, Israel has accepted Trump's more comprehensive 20-point peace plan, which was endorsed by a UN Security Council resolution. Although Hamas has engaged with Trump's plan, it has not formally accepted it in full.

"There is no phase one and phase two, that is an invention of Hamas," says the Israeli advisor, Michael Eisenberg, who maintains that Israel is currently exceeding its aid commitments. "Hamas must disarm, demilitarise, and deradicalise. That's the future of Gaza according to the 20-point plan."

In March, the High Representative for Gaza on the Board of Peace, Nickolay Mladenov, laid out a detailed plan for Palestinian armed groups to decommission their weapons, starting with rockets, explosives and assault rifles. He linked compliance to Israeli military withdrawal and reconstruction in Gaza and warned that refusal could lead to a return to war.

This week, Mladenov said there was "no daylight" between the Board of Peace and Israel regarding security concerns, when he spoke to Israel's i24 news channel. He stressed that donors would not fund Gaza's reconstruction unless there was a lasting peace.

"The Board of Peace has significant commitments in terms of financing from the Gulf countries but only once conditions in Gaza are such that there will be no return to war - that includes decommissioning of weapons in Gaza," Mladenov said.

While Hamas has publicly welcomed the creation of the new 15-member Palestinian technocratic committee – and pledged to hand over governance to the body - there have been growing signs that the group is reasserting its authority.

Traders and shopkeepers complain that it imposes new taxes on goods and services. Hamas has reactivated its police force.

Under Trump's 20-point plan, an international stabilisation force is supposed to enter Gaza, working with a new Palestinian police force. The plan says Hamas – which led the deadly attack and mass hostage taking in Israel in October 2023, triggering the war – should have no role in future governance.

The Hamas-led attack killed about 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage, Israeli authorities say. Israel's offensive has killed 72,628 people in Gaza, the health authority there says.

Regional mediators Qatar, Egypt and Turkey are currently said to be exerting heavy pressure on Hamas to move on disarmament.