The Hamas Document: A Historic Concession on Paper and Risks on the Ground

The most significant issue in the 15-point document that the Peace Council diplomats achieved with Hamas is its agreement to surrender its weapons of all kinds, which is written in the document in at least three clauses.

This is a drama with truly historical significance, since in the name of the organization Hamas — Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya, the Islamic Resistance Movement — this is the most important word. Resistance means armed struggle against Israel. The weapon is the symbol, and Hamas is giving up its symbol here.

In the document, it reaffirms its commitment to the Trump agreement from last year, including the full waiver of rule in the Strip: civil, military, and police. This is a particularly significant step: Hamas has ruled Gaza since the coup in the summer of 2007, and now it is giving up this control completely — on paper. This is effectively an admission by Hamas that it has been defeated, and that the results of the October 7 massacre were the destruction of the Strip, the loss of control over it, and the bringing of most of its territory under IDF control.

The Road to Implementation and Risks for Israel

But the road to the actual implementation of the paper is still long and involves deliberations and risks for Israel. At the top of the problematic clauses is the Israeli withdrawal from the territory. The document states that Israel must immediately complete its obligations from the "Sharm el-Sheikh Protocol" — meaning a withdrawal to the yellow line from the additional territories it has occupied in recent months. These territories were not occupied for nothing; they expanded Israel's control and intelligence capabilities to monitor Hamas's terrorist activity and prevent it.

The subsequent withdrawal is supposed, according to the document, to be coordinated with the stages of handing over the weapons, while the Israeli position — as expressed by the Prime Minister himself — is that the withdrawal from the yellow line will only occur after a full demilitarization of the Strip. No serious Israeli factor will allow a withdrawal to the international line without a buffer zone with an IDF presence between the Israeli settlements on the fence and the territory that will be under Palestinian control.

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Weapons Within Reach

Here we arrive at the weapons handover clauses. The problems are fundamental. Hamas is willing to hand over the weapons only to Palestinian hands. The document states: "The Palestinian factions will take part in this process, and no weapons will be transferred or handed over to Israel or to non-Palestinian parties." The weapons will be handed over for "storage" inside Gaza, under the control of a technocratic national committee. That is, the weapons will be kept within reach of the terrorist organizations, under the control of a weak body without security capabilities, which effectively violates the principle of demilitarizing the Strip.

In addition, some of the weapons will remain in the hands of Hamas through its civil police personnel, all of whom are also members of Hamas's military units. Although the document states that recruits will undergo a background check, it is unclear if the Shin Bet will be involved in this process.

IDF Will Need "Clear Proof"

Another problematic part is the cessation of military operations. The document determines that Israel will fulfill its obligations, "especially the cessation of military operations." This means that in order to take military action, such as a liquidation or hitting terror infrastructure, clear proof will be required that it was necessary to remove an immediate threat. The one who will supervise this is the new "International Verification Committee," whose composition is unclear but will likely include representations from unfriendly countries, potentially aiming to prevent Israeli actions entirely.

Despite these concerns, a senior Palestinian source involved in the negotiations tells "Hayom": "Israel should adopt the agreement even in this wording; it constitutes a significant concession by Hamas, and we won't be able to get more than this from it at this stage. This is much more than what could have been dreamed of a year ago."