The Trump administration announced on July 31, 2026, that its "Board of Peace" had reached an agreement aimed at disarming Hamas and other militant organizations operating in Gaza as part of efforts to consolidate a ceasefire that has proven fragile since taking effect on October 10, 2025. According to Hamas statements, the group agreed to a deal aimed at fully ending Israel's war on Gaza, with provisions for Hamas to disarm and surrender weapons in stages while Israel commits to withdrawing its forces over an agreed period.
The agreement has garnered further backing from allied militant groups. The Al-Quds Brigades, an armed faction, consented to the disarmament plan on August 2, 2026. However, significant obstacles remain: Israel has not publicly agreed to the latest disarmament proposal, and Hamas has stated it will not implement any part of the agreement unless Israeli forces fulfill their own withdrawal obligations.
The humanitarian toll of the conflict continues to mount even under the ceasefire framework. According to a UN report cited by UNICEF, approximately 300 children in Gaza have reportedly been killed in the roughly 300 days since the ceasefire supposedly took hold, underscoring the fragility of the arrangement and ongoing security concerns that diaspora communities with family ties to the region continue to monitor closely.
