Regional and international mediators have repeatedly proposed initiatives to halt the war in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023. Each effort, however, encountered Israeli intransigence, while Hamas continued to insist on conditions aimed at securing a lasting end to the war.
Despite changes in mediators, formulas and proposals, the central dispute remained unchanged. Hamas demanded guarantees for a permanent ceasefire and the complete withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces, while the Israeli government insisted on retaining the right to resume military operations until it achieved its declared objectives, foremost among them dismantling the movement’s military capabilities.
Successive rounds of negotiations stalled between these two positions. Some proposals were amended, others produced temporary agreements, and several collapsed before implementation. The process eventually led to US President Donald Trump’s plan, which resulted in a ceasefire in October 2025 that the Israeli government continues to violate daily.
24 November 2023: The First Temporary Agreement
On 24 November 2023, the Israeli occupation government and Hamas reached a temporary agreement primarily mediated by Qatar.
The agreement included an exchange of captives and the entry of humanitarian aid and fuel trucks into all areas of the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing.
It lasted only four days. The Israeli government then rejected efforts to extend it, leading to the resumption of the war.
28 January 2024: The Paris Proposal
A proposal emerged on 28 January 2024 from a meeting in Paris attended by Egypt, Qatar, the United States and the Israeli occupation state.
The proposal consisted of three implementation stages and called for a four-month ceasefire in Gaza in exchange for the release of all Israeli captives.
It also provided Hamas with international guarantees, including guarantees from the United States, that a comprehensive agreement could be reached to bring the war on Gaza to a permanent end.
Hamas accepted the proposal and stressed that it must be tied to a definitive end to the war. The Israeli government rejected it, arguing that it did not fulfil its objective of eliminating the movement.
31 May 2024: Biden’s Three-Stage Proposal
On 31 May 2024, former US President Joe Biden announced what he described as a comprehensive Israeli proposal for a ceasefire and the release of all captives.
The three-stage proposal called for a sustainable ceasefire. Biden described it as a “road map” towards a complete cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from all populated areas of Gaza.
Hamas said at the time that it had not received written commitments guaranteeing a lasting ceasefire.
Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said Biden’s announcement was an attempt to conceal Israel’s rejection of the Paris agreement proposal that Hamas had already accepted.
The Israeli occupation government accepted the proposal’s general framework while continuing to reject a permanent end to the war.
10 June 2024: UN Security Council Resolution 2735
On 10 June 2024, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2735, endorsing Biden’s Gaza proposal and calling for its implementation in three stages.
Hamas announced its preliminary acceptance of the resolution.
The Israeli occupation government, however, dealt selectively with its provisions and refused to implement it.
15 January 2025: Three-Stage Ceasefire Agreement
On 15 January 2025, Hamas and the Israeli occupation government signed an agreement mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.
The agreement consisted of three stages and was intended to lead to a sustainable end to the war, the complete withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from the Gaza Strip and arrangements for the beginning of reconstruction.
It entered into effect on 19 January.
The first stage formally ended after its 42-day period expired on 1 March 2025, without an agreement on how the second stage would be implemented.
The Israeli occupation government proposed extending the first stage in an effort to continue captive exchanges without entering the second stage, which required a permanent end to the war.
Hamas rejected the proposal and insisted that the second stage be implemented in accordance with the original agreement.
Israel first violated the agreement by closing the crossings. It later intensified its bombardment before fully resuming the war.
8 October 2025: Trump’s Plan to End the War
The plan announced on 8 October 2025 was the first US initiative to state explicitly that its objective was to end the war completely rather than establish a temporary truce.
It later developed into a phased agreement that entered into effect on 10 October.
The plan called for the disarmament or dismantling of the military capabilities of armed Palestinian factions, including Hamas, during the implementation stages.
This became one of its most contentious provisions. Hamas linked any measure concerning its weapons to an end to the occupation and a complete Israeli withdrawal, while Israel insisted that disarmament must be a fundamental condition.
The Israeli government failed to comply with the first stage of the agreement. It reduced the volume of humanitarian aid, restricted travel outside the Gaza Strip and continued violating the ceasefire through a broad series of assassinations targeting resistance leaders in Gaza.
Israel also repeatedly demanded the activation and implementation of Article Eight of the second stage, concerning the surrender of factional weapons, before fulfilling its own obligations under the first stage.
29 July 2026: The Mladenov Plan
On 29 July 2026, Hamas and the Palestinian resistance factions accepted a plan presented by Nikolay Mladenov, the High Representative of the Board of Peace, for moving into the second stage of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
The factions reached a consensual formulation with the mediators covering all provisions of the plan, including issues related to the administration of the Gaza Strip and the mechanism for addressing weapons.
