Ceasefire, and where things stand

The deal

Trump's 20-point plan, announced in September 2025, offered a trade. Hamas would free all the hostages, give up its weapons and leave power. Israel would stop the war, pull back in stages and let aid in; nobody would be forced to leave Gaza. Palestinian experts would run Gaza for a time, under a Board of PeaceBoard of Peace✕A body chaired by US President Donald Trump, created by the US peace plan of September 2025 and endorsed by the UN Security Council, to oversee Gaza's transition and rebuilding until the end of 2027.All words explained → chaired by Trump, with an international force keeping order. A Palestinian state might follow, if the Palestinian Authority reformed.

The ceasefire began on 10 October 2025. Three days later the last 20Last living hostages freed✕20As of 13 October 2025Source: Times of Israel — All 20 remaining living hostages return to Israel after over 2 years in Hamas captivity (13 Oct 2025) living hostages came home, and Israel freed 1,968Palestinian prisoners and detainees freed in the October 2025 deal✕1,968As of 13 October 2025About 250 serving long or life sentences, many for deadly attacks, and about 1,700 people from Gaza detained during the war, most never charged.Source: Adnkronos (citing the Israel Prison Service) — Israel has released 1,968 Palestinian prisoners (13 Oct 2025) Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Returning the bodies of the dead hostages took until January 2026: Israel accused Hamas of stalling; Hamas said some were hard to find.

A year later

• The line. Israeli troops pulled back to a "yellow line"Yellow line✕The line inside Gaza to which Israeli troops withdrew under the October 2025 ceasefire, marked on the ground with yellow concrete blocks. It first gave Israel about 53% of Gaza; it has since moved west.All words explained → that left them about half of Gaza. It has since moved west: Israel now holds at least 60%Share of Gaza held by the Israeli army✕at least 60%As of October 2026The ceasefire line (the 'yellow line') first gave Israel about 53%. It has since moved west several times; estimates range from 60% (UN inquiry) to about two-thirds (Reuters). In May 2026 Prime Minister Netanyahu told the army to expand control to 70%.Sources: The National — UN Commission of Inquiry: Israel 'continuing to commit genocidal acts' in Gaza despite ceasefire (26 Oct 2026)Israel rejected the findings and called for the commission to be dissolved.Al Jazeera — What has Trump's Board of Peace achieved in a year since the Gaza ceasefire? (10 Oct 2026)AAP (Australian Associated Press) — Israel PM tasks army to take 70 per cent of Gaza Strip (May 2026) of the territory, and almost all of Gaza's people are crowded into the rest.
• The killing has slowed, not stopped. More than 1,500Palestinians killed in Gaza since the October 2025 ceasefire✕more than 1,500As of 19 October 2026Health Ministry figure (1,522), including 351 children according to UNICEF. Israel says it strikes militants who attack its troops or approach its lines; Palestinians and aid groups say many of the dead were civilians.Sources: UN OCHA — Humanitarian situation report, 22 October 2026 (22 Oct 2026)Gaza Ministry of Health — Casualty reports, as published by UN OCHA (2023–2026)The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government in Gaza. Its counts do not separate fighters from civilians. The UN uses them and found them broadly accurate in earlier wars; Israel disputes them. Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Israel says it strikes militants who attack its troops or come near its lines; several Israeli soldiers have also been killed.
• Stuck. Israel will not withdraw until Hamas disarms; Hamas will not disarm while Israeli troops remain. The Palestinian expert committee still works from Cairo, and the international force has not arrived.
• Life in the ruins. Almost everyone lives in tents or damaged buildings, and more than 1.4 million peoplePeople in Gaza facing crisis-level hunger or worse✕more than 1.4 million (67%)As of July 2026Forecast for July–December 2026. No area is classified as famine. Without aid, about 90% of people would face high levels of hunger.Sources: IPC (global hunger monitor) — Gaza Strip: acute food insecurity and malnutrition, April–December 2026 (23 Jul 2026)UN OCHA (UN humanitarian office) — Reported impact snapshot: Gaza Strip, 28 October 2026 (28 Oct 2026)Casualty numbers come from Gaza's Ministry of Health and from the Israeli authorities; the UN marks figures it has not verified itself. — two in three — face crisis-level hunger. The EU, UN and World Bank estimate that rebuilding will cost $71.4 billion over 10 yearsCost to rebuild Gaza✕$71.4 billion over 10 yearsAs of April 2026Joint estimate by the EU, the UN and the World Bank.Source: European Union, United Nations and World Bank — Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (final, covering 24 months of war) (20 Apr 2026).

Beyond Gaza

In the West Bank, the UN counts 1,138Palestinians killed in the West Bank since 7 October 2023✕1,138As of 6 October 2026UN figure, including at least 250 children; most were killed by Israeli forces, some by settlers. Israel says most were armed militants or attackers. Over the same period Palestinian attacks killed dozens of Israelis in the West Bank and inside Israel (58 by October 2025, according to the UN).Source: UNRWA — Situation report #236 on the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank (Oct 2026) Palestinians killed since October 2023, most by Israeli forces and some by settlers; Israel says most were militants or attackers. Palestinian attacks have killed dozens of Israelis, and settler attacks are at record levels. In Israel's election of 27 October 2026, Netanyahu and his allies won 53 of 120 seatsSeats won by Netanyahu's camp in Israel's election✕53 of 120As of 27 October 2026Down from 68. The opposition parties led by former army chief Gadi Eisenkot won 48 and Arab parties won 19, their highest ever. Nobody has the 61 seats needed to govern; coalition talks were under way.Source: Times of Israel — With all votes counted, Netanyahu's bloc at 53 seats, Eisenkot's 48, Arab parties 19 (30 Oct 2026); a government needs 61, so the parties are negotiating. And since February 2026 the United States and Israel have been at war with Iran.

Two views

What should happen next in Gaza?

Many Israelis say

Hamas must give up its weapons and leave power first. Until then, Israeli troops must stay to protect Israel's towns. Gaza can only be rebuilt once it can never again be used to attack Israel.

Many Palestinians say

Israel must stop the strikes, pull out its troops as promised and let aid and building materials in. Gazans should not wait in tents for years while others argue. Gaza's future must be decided by Palestinians.

These are widely held views, not the views of every Israeli or every Palestinian. Both societies argue about these questions among themselves.

Go deeper · optionalMore: the details of the plan, the West Bank, the region and the world▾

The plan. Hamas members who accepted peaceful coexistence and gave up their weapons would receive an amnesty. The UN Security Council's Resolution 2803 (17 November 2025) backed the Board of Peace and the international force until the end of 2027. The last hostage remains — those of police officer Ran Gvili — were recovered on 26 January 2026.

Since the ceasefire. Hamas accepted a plan for gradual disarmament in July 2026, but tied it to Israeli withdrawal; it still controls security in the areas it holds. The Palestinian committee is led by Ali Shaath; Israel approved it in principle but has not let it into Gaza. Countries including Indonesia, Morocco and Kazakhstan have pledged troops for the international force. Governments have pledged about $17 billionMoney pledged to the Board of Peace for Gaza✕about $17 billionAs of 2026Including $10 billion promised by the United States. Reuters reported in April 2026 that less than $1 billion had actually arrived.Sources: Times of Israel (Reuters) — Board of Peace has received only a tiny fraction of the $17 billion pledged for Gaza (Apr 2026)Al Jazeera — What has Trump's Board of Peace achieved in a year since the Gaza ceasefire? (10 Oct 2026) to the Board of Peace, but only a small part has arrived, and Israel blocks most building materials while Hamas is armed. About 60,000 childrenChildren in Gaza who lost one or both parents✕about 60,000As of October 2026UNICEF estimate.Source: UN OCHA (UN humanitarian office) — Reported impact snapshot: Gaza Strip, 28 October 2026 (28 Oct 2026)Casualty numbers come from Gaza's Ministry of Health and from the Israeli authorities; the UN marks figures it has not verified itself. have lost one or both parents. The Rafah crossing to Egypt reopened in February 2026 for a limited number of people.

The West Bank. Settler attacks reached a record 2,159Settler attacks causing injuries or damage in 2026✕2,159As of 1 January – 19 October 2026About seven a day — a record since the UN began counting in 2006. The previous record was 2025 (1,836 for the whole year).Source: UN OCHA — Humanitarian situation report, 22 October 2026 (22 Oct 2026) in 2026 alone, according to the UN. More than 33,000 refugeesRefugees forced out of three northern West Bank camps✕more than 33,000As of September 2026From Jenin, Tulkarm and Nur Shams camps since an Israeli operation began in January 2025. Israel says it is fighting armed groups based in the camps; the UN calls it the largest displacement in the West Bank since 1967.Source: Jurist (citing a UN Human Rights Office report) — UN report finds Israeli forces forcibly displaced Palestinians from West Bank refugee camps (Sep 2026)Israel describes the operation as counter-terrorism against armed groups in the camps. have been forced out of three refugee camps by an Israeli military operation, which Israel says targets armed groups based there. In 2026 Israel's government approved new settlements and new rules tightening its hold on the land, which Palestinians and many governments call annexation in practice.

Politics. In Israel's election, parties led by former army chief Gadi Eisenkot won 48 seats and Arab parties 19, their highest ever. Netanyahu's trial on corruption charges, which began in 2020, continues. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, now 90, has postponed elections to September 2027. Hamas chose Khalil al-Hayya as its leader in 2026.

The region. In February 2026, US and Israeli strikes on Iran killed its supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and set off a wider war that was still unresolved in October. Fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon flared again in March 2026.

The world. About 157 of the 193UN member states that recognise the State of Palestine✕about 157 of 193As of 2026The UK, France, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium and others joined in September 2025. The United States, Germany, Italy and Japan have not recognised it. Counts vary slightly by method.Source: Wikipedia (summary) — International recognition of Palestine UN member states now recognise a State of Palestine. Attacks on Jews rose sharply around the world, including deadly attacks in Washington and Manchester in 2025; attacks on Muslims and Palestinians abroad rose too. The genocide case at the International Court of Justice continues. In October 2026, the UN commission of inquiry said Israel was still committing genocidal acts in Gaza; Israel rejected the report and called for the commission to be shut down.