Gaza ceasefire deal puts Board of Peace in charge of Hamas disarmament

Beirut,UPDATED: Jul 31, 2026 20:32 IST

The agreement announced by US President Donald Trump for Gaza, centred on Hamas giving up its weapons, an Israeli withdrawal and a transition to civilian rule, will put the Board of Peace at the centre of efforts to enforce the ceasefire. The deal, announced late Thursday, could open a path to ending the latest Israel-Hamas war.

The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Israel's offensive in Gaza has since killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, including hundreds who died after a ceasefire took effect on October 10. estimates by the United Nations, World Bank and European Union put Gaza's reconstruction cost at USD 70 billion.

Hamas officials said the group has agreed to the disarmament deal, while Israel has not commented. The Board of Peace is expected to play a major role in overseeing how the agreement is carried out.

The Board of Peace was first mentioned in September when the White House released Trump's plan to end the war in Gaza. The 20-point ceasefire plan called on Hamas to surrender its weapons and dismantle its tunnel network. It also envisioned Israeli forces leaving Gaza, a new technocratic Palestinian government taking charge, the deployment of an international security force and the rebuilding of the enclave after more than two years of war.

More than two dozen countries signed up as founding members of the board, including Israel, regional powers and countries outside the Middle East such as Indonesia, Paraguay and Vietnam. Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom were among more than a dozen countries that did not join the board but attended a February meeting as observers.

Israelis have been wary of the role of Qatar and Turkiye because of their longstanding ties with Hamas. Earlier this year, Palestinians objected because their representatives were not invited to the board, even though it was discussing the future of a territory where around 2 million people live.

A USD 1 billion contribution gives a country permanent membership on the board instead of a three-year term, which does not require a contribution. At the board's first meeting in Washington in February, members pledged USD 7 billion in aid for Gaza, far short of the USD 70 billion that international bodies say will be needed for reconstruction. The board also announced plans for international troops, police and rebuilding, but gave no timeline.

Nickolay Mladenov, director-general of the Board of Peace in Gaza, said on X that the agreement was reached after months of "very difficult negotiations". "There were several points when I did not believe we would make it," he said. Mladenov also said, "Implementation and verification have to be real" and "withdrawal must move in lockstep with decommissioning."

The Committee for The Administration of Gaza, a Palestinian technocratic body working under the board's supervision, has been tasked with running Gaza during the interim period after Hamas gives up control. Its responsibilities include setting up a new police force to replace the one run by Hamas and carrying out the disarmament process, though the details remain unclear. The NCAS said on Friday that it is ready to assume responsibility for governing Gaza and restoring public services and the rule of law.

In November, the Trump administration's blueprint for securing and governing Gaza won strong support at the United Nations. Israel and the US say Hamas' disarmament is essential for progress on other parts of the plan. Arab and Muslim members of the Board of Peace have accused Israel of undermining the ceasefire with daily strikes and have urged the US to restrain its ally. They have called on Hamas to disarm, but say an Israeli withdrawal is equally important.

Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad, who is part of the group's negotiating team, told Qatar's Al Jazeera TV on Friday that the agreement is a "full package" and that Hamas' disarmament is one part of it. "Hamas and Palestinian factions are making concessions for the sake of our Palestinian people in Gaza," Hamad said. He added that Hamas would not take any step unless it was sure that Israel would implement the deal on its side.

Israel defines demilitarisation as covering everything from heavy weapons such as rocket-propelled grenades to the roughly 60,000 rifles that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says must be surrendered. Trump, along with his son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff, has also laid out plans to rebuild Gaza with international investment. In Davos last year, Kushner said reconstruction could be completed in about three years, though UN estimates suggest that clearing rubble and removing mines alone could take much longer. His presentation showed a rebuilt Gaza with a coastal tourism strip, industrial zones and data centres, while also making clear that rebuilding would begin only in demilitarised areas and that security would be necessary to draw investment.

The ceasefire agreement also provides for a temporary Stabilisation Force made up of troops from Arab and Muslim-majority countries. Its mandate has not been fully detailed, but it would include securing aid deliveries, preventing weapons smuggling, and vetting and training a Palestinian police force. Major General Jasper Jeffers, who leads the effort, said in February that the plan calls for 12,000 police and 20,000 soldiers for Gaza.

Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania have pledged troops for the force, while Egypt and Jordan have agreed to train police. Troops are to be deployed first in Rafah, a heavily damaged and largely depopulated city under full Israeli control, where the US administration wants reconstruction efforts to begin. But the plan suffered a setback about a week after the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, when Indonesia put its commitment of 8,000 troops on indefinite hold. Around 1,000 were due to go in April, with the rest expected in June.

In summary, the new Gaza deal places the Board of Peace at the centre of a complex process involving Hamas' disarmament, an Israeli withdrawal, interim civilian administration and an international stabilisation force, even as questions remain over implementation, security and funding for reconstruction.

With PTI Inputs

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