Gaza war enters next phase after Israel recovers bodies of final hostages

Israel recovered the body of the final hostage required to complete the first stage of a U.S.-mediated peace plan with Hamas on Monday, according to officials.

The remains of Israeli police officer Ran Gvili, who was killed during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, were located in northern Gaza. The return of all hostages, whether living or deceased, was a primary condition for completing the deal's first phase.

Attention now shifts to the second phase of the agreement, which mediators expect to be significantly more challenging. This stage includes reopening the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, deploying an international security force, disarming Hamas, and beginning the reconstruction of Gaza.

Hamas confirmed its commitment to the agreement but called on mediators, particularly the United States, to force Israel to comply with its obligations.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, stated that the next phase must focus on "disarming Hamas and the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip" rather than reconstruction.

The United Nations emphasized the importance of fully implementing the ceasefire deal. U.N. officials also called for unhindered humanitarian access through the Rafah crossing, where critical aid shipments are currently stalled.

While the conclusion of Phase One marks a significant diplomatic milestone, the road through Phase Two of the peace plan appears increasingly fraught as the primary stakeholders remain deadlocked over sequencing and the definition of success.

The core of the impasse lies in a fundamental divergence of priorities. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signaled a rigid "security-first" doctrine, insisting on the total disarmament of Hamas as a non-negotiable prerequisite. By explicitly decoupling security guarantees from Gaza’s reconstruction, Netanyahu has signaled that Israel will not entertain long-term recovery efforts until the military threat is neutralized.

This stands in direct opposition to the demands of Hamas, the United Nations, and the Palestinian population, who view the reopening of the Rafah crossing and the immediate commencement of reconstruction as urgent humanitarian imperatives. Proponents of this view argue that delaying the rebuilding of critical infrastructure will only serve to deepen a catastrophic humanitarian crisis.

The most significant pressure point now centers on the disarmament of Hamas. Officials within the Trump administration have expressed confidence in a proposed framework that would trade weapons for amnesty, describing it as a robust mechanism for demilitarization. However, the prospect of a militant organization that has governed Gaza for two decades voluntarily surrendering its primary lever of power represents a formidable hurdle. While President Trump has signaled a willingness to utilize "coercive diplomacy"—warning of alternative actions should Hamas obstruct the process—the efficacy of such threats remains an open question.

Ultimately, the friction between Israel’s pursuit of absolute security and the Palestinian requirement for immediate relief and reconstruction creates a structural imbalance. Without a compromise on these foundational issues, the risk of the entire peace process stalling remains high.