U.S. says second phase of Gaza ceasefire has begun, but major challenges remain : NPR

TO MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

President Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is beginning. He said on Wednesday that phase 2 would establish a new Palestinian administration in Gaza and begin the complete demilitarization and reconstruction of the territory. We’re joined now by NPR’s Aya Batrawy in Dubai to discuss what’s next. Alright, so phase two. What does this actually mean?

AYA BATRAWY, BYLINE: OK. Yeah. Well, it was very important for the White House to make this announcement now because the ceasefire is fragile. You know, in the first three months since Trump passed this measure, more than 450 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Some have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, but many are shot almost daily by Israeli troops who still occupy more than half of the Gaza Strip. So, while the ceasefire was stuck in its initial phase without any progress, we saw Hamas reassert itself in that part of the territory it still holds and Israeli troops strengthen their hold on the territory they hold in Gaza. And all this is happening while the people of Gaza suffer without reconstruction or progress due to another harsh winter. And that’s why this next phase of the ceasefire is so important to its success, and the demilitarization of Gaza is at the heart of this second phase. But you know, none of this is going to change overnight.

MARTÍNEZ: Understood. Now, what you mentioned – demilitarization – what does the plan say about that?

BATRAWY: Very good. Well, the wording of Trump’s peace plan is vague on this. Negotiations are therefore essential, but they have not yet started. But we heard from senior White House officials yesterday, who said that there is a general concept that what they call the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza is being destroyed. And they say that heavy weapons, like rockets, would be placed in a place where they would not be used to defend against Israel or to attack Israel.

Now the Israeli government wants all weapons taken out of the hands of Palestinian militant groups and no tunnels left intact. Hamas now says it is willing to negotiate the storage of weapons until a new Palestinian government is in power, but it wants Israeli troops to withdraw in tandem, in coordination with the laying down of weapons. But the White House and Israel say the withdrawal of Israeli troops to Gaza’s buffer zones will only take place after demilitarization. So there’s always a lot of complex moving parts and a lot of uncertainty about what’s going to happen next.

MARTÍNEZ: And who exactly would oversee disarmament and govern Gaza in this coming phase?

BATRAWY: Okay. Party A of disarmament will therefore probably be Egypt. They are a mediator between Israel and Hamas. They border the Gaza Strip in Israel and, you know, they would like to be part of a larger international force deployed in Gaza to do this, with militant groups agreeing to stockpile their weapons, not by force. But this International Stabilization Force must be assembled and deployed in Gaza, and this has not yet been done.

Now, with this new Palestinian committee in formation, this is what will govern Gaza. This does not include Hamas. These are Palestinian factions who are currently meeting in Cairo, including Hamas, to finalize the names of these technocrats. There will be approximately 12 to 15 people responsible for managing Gaza’s civil affairs. Think about education, health, policing, things like that. And this committee will be headed by a man named Ali Shaath. He is a former deputy minister of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. Now, this committee will be overseen by President Trump, who will oversee what is called the Peace Council. World leaders have been invited to join this board, and they are expected to hold their first meeting next week at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

But look, there is still one hostage body that was taken during the Hamas attack – October 7, 2023 – and which has not been found in Gaza. And Israel has been very reluctant to open the Gaza border with Egypt so that more aid can come in through there or for people to leave and come back until the body is returned. But the real threat to this entire ceasefire is the protests unfolding in Iran and the possibility of U.S. and Israeli attacks there, which could spark a new war and distract from these crucial next steps.

MARTÍNEZ: This is Aya Batrawy from NPR. Thank you so much.

BATRAWY: Thank you.

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