One year after the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians have experienced little of the peace they were promised. Instead, the declared cessation of military operations has given way to what residents describe as an undeclared war, with Israeli attacks continuing by land, sea and air.
With more than 5,000 reported Israeli violations of the agreement, the ceasefire is increasingly being described by Palestinian analysts as a political and tactical manoeuvre that allowed Israel to reduce international pressure while continuing its military operations and maintaining devastating humanitarian conditions in the besieged territory.
An Al Jazeera report prepared by journalist Noor Khaled examines how an agreement intended to end the fighting has instead coincided with continued Palestinian casualties, expanding Israeli territorial control and severe restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
More Than 5,400 Ceasefire Violations and Thousands of Casualties
As the ceasefire agreement enters its second year, Israeli military operations continue to claim Palestinian lives.
Medical sources reported that a Palestinian child was killed by Israeli gunfire in Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, while six other Palestinians were wounded by Israeli fire in Khan Younis in the south.
The incidents came as Palestinian authorities documented thousands of alleged violations of the ceasefire arrangements over the preceding year.
According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, Israel committed 5,474 violations of its ceasefire obligations during the first year of the agreement, resulting in the deaths of approximately 1,500 Palestinians and injuries to around 5,000 others.
The figures challenge the notion that the agreement has brought an effective end to Israel’s military campaign.
At the same time, Israeli military control has reportedly expanded to approximately 70 per cent of the Gaza Strip, leaving the Palestinian population concentrated in an increasingly restricted area.
The combination of continued attacks, civilian casualties and extensive territorial control has raised fundamental questions about the effectiveness of the ceasefire and whether its implementation has achieved the protection it was supposed to provide.
For Gaza’s residents, the distinction between an officially declared ceasefire and continuing military hostilities has become increasingly difficult to recognise in their daily lives.
Gaza Buried Under 68 Million Tonnes of Rubble
Beyond the continuing casualties, Gaza’s humanitarian catastrophe remains largely unresolved.
Israel continues to impose restrictions on the entry of humanitarian assistance and essential equipment, according to Palestinian emergency officials, leaving displaced families struggling to obtain food, shelter and the basic materials needed for survival.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence, accused Israeli authorities of refusing to allow sufficient food supplies and essential equipment into the territory.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Basal said the quantities permitted to enter Gaza were negligible compared with the actual needs of the population.
The restrictions have particularly severe consequences in a territory where vast residential areas have been reduced to rubble and where many Palestinians have repeatedly lost their homes.
According to United Nations estimates cited in the report, more than 68 million tonnes of rubble have accumulated across Gaza.
With appropriate equipment unavailable, displaced residents are forced to clear debris by hand to create enough space to erect worn-out tents.
These improvised shelters are often established in areas that are unsuitable for habitation, reflecting the extreme conditions facing families who have already endured prolonged displacement and the destruction of their communities.
Residents interviewed by Al Jazeera said their living conditions had not improved since the ceasefire agreement.
For many, the promised relief has failed to materialise.
They described a situation in which the supposed peace had brought no meaningful improvement, leaving families to continue living among collapsed buildings and inside deteriorating tents.
The humanitarian conditions have reinforced concerns that the ceasefire, while formally remaining in place, has failed to produce the substantial changes necessary to protect civilian life or enable recovery.
A Political Agreement or a Tactical Cover for Continued War?
Political analyst Ahmed al-Tanani argues that Israel’s participation in the ceasefire agreement was not primarily intended to end the war.
Instead, he believes the Israeli government viewed the agreement as a tactical measure designed to reduce mounting international pressure.
According to al-Tanani, Israel used the political framework of the ceasefire to ease diplomatic scrutiny while continuing its military campaign inside Gaza.
He told Al Jazeera that rather than fulfilling the agreement’s obligations, Israel had transformed it into a cover for the continuation of what he described as its genocidal war and aggression against Palestinians.
In his assessment, the agreement offered Israel a means of maintaining military pressure while benefiting politically from the appearance of a cessation of hostilities.
Al-Tanani’s interpretation presents the ceasefire not as a failed peace arrangement alone, but as a political instrument that he believes has enabled the continuation of Israeli operations under a different framework.
The contrast between the agreement’s declared objectives and the conditions reported across Gaza lies at the centre of his criticism.
While the ceasefire was supposed to end large-scale hostilities and alleviate the suffering of the civilian population, Palestinian authorities continue to report fatalities, injuries, bombardment and severe humanitarian restrictions.
The continued Israeli military presence across much of Gaza has further intensified questions over whether the agreement is producing a meaningful withdrawal or simply preserving existing military arrangements.
For the Palestinian population, al-Tanani argues, the result has been the continuation of wartime suffering under what he characterises as a false truce.
Gaza’s Death Toll Reaches 74,370 as Attacks Continue
The continuing violence takes place against the backdrop of an enormous Palestinian death toll since Israel launched its military campaign in Gaza following 7 October 2023.
According to the latest Palestinian Ministry of Health figures cited in the report, 74,370 Palestinians have been killed and 175,371 wounded since the beginning of the Israeli offensive.
The ministry also provided a more precise account of casualties recorded since the ceasefire agreement took effect.
Its figures indicate that 1,481 Palestinians have been killed and 5,254 wounded during the ceasefire period, as of the reporting date.
Israeli forces have continued carrying out airstrikes, artillery bombardments and gunfire across different parts of the Gaza Strip, despite the agreement remaining formally in place.
These operations, together with the reported restrictions on humanitarian access and the extensive destruction of civilian infrastructure, have left Palestinians facing the consequences of a war that the ceasefire was intended to bring to an end.
After an entire year, the agreement’s anniversary has therefore become a measure of the distance between its stated objectives and the reality experienced by Gaza’s residents.
The central controversy is no longer limited to the number of alleged violations.
It also concerns whether the ceasefire has meaningfully restricted Israel’s military campaign or, as Palestinian analysts allege, provided political cover for its continuation while Gaza’s population remains trapped amid displacement, destruction and recurring attacks.
