Israel Kills, Destroys and Occupies Gaza as Hamas War Stalls Amid Middle East Conflict

Gaza remains mired in a severe humanitarian crisis as efforts to permanently end the war between Israel and Hamas have stalled, with the territory’s fate described as being eclipsed by wider Middle East conflict.

Palestinian Ahmed Jamali, 53, told Agence France-Presse from the displacement camp in Gaza that “We are weak and oppressed, and Israel is doing whatever it wants: killing, destroying and occupying Gaza, while no one in the world lifts a finger.”

Al-Jazeera Net

The South China Morning Post links the Gaza war to a chain of events that culminated in the US-Israeli war with Iran, saying Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered a devastating military response in Gaza.

It adds that what began as a local war between Israel and Hamas evolved into a regional conflict, drawing in Tehran-backed allies like Hezbollah in Lebanon and Yemen’s Houthi rebels and eventually Iran itself.

The article frames the stalling of peace efforts as tied to Washington and Tehran wrangling over terms for peace, leaving Gaza’s fate “largely out of mind.”

A separate account from Ynetnews says the “message” 1,000 days after October 7 is that the U.S. administration has decided to give up on Hamas disarmament as a condition for rebuilding the Gaza Strip.

It says disarming Hamas was part of President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan that paved the way for the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, and that Israel’s government approved the plan in October 2025.

Al-Jazeera Net

Ynetnews reports that envoy Steve Witkoff is negotiating with Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official in Qatar, and it describes the U.S. push toward partial disarmament while noting that “there is still no agreed definition of what counts as heavy weapons.”

The same article says the Americans have moved to phase two, with gradual reconstruction of parts of Gaza under Israeli control, and it describes the project as expected to be completed within 10 years.

It also asserts that the IDF controls 60% of the territory and surrounds Hamas from all sides, including the Philadelphi Corridor, while Hamas’ control over the population stabilized and strengthened.

Al-Jazeera Net reports that Channel 12 quoted an Israeli assessment that the war in the Gaza Strip may be resumed within two months and ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections in October, under the pretext of Hamas violating the ceasefire while Israel continues its violations.

It says the Peace Council, chaired by U.S. President Donald Trump, is responsible for supervising reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, while the National Committee for Gaza Administration handles daily life in the enclave during the transitional period.

The report adds that the Israeli channel said the Israeli army would be able, if fighting resumes, to operate in territories not currently under its control, and it describes a timeline in which Nikolai Miladinov would declare Hamas in violation if nothing changes within three months.

Al-Jazeera Net also states that Israeli violations of the ceasefire announced since October 10, 2025 continue, resulting in 1,059 Palestinians killed and 3,429 others wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

It further says the ceasefire was reached after two years of Israeli devastation that left more than 73,000 dead and more than 173,000 Palestinian wounded, and that 90% of civilian infrastructure was destroyed.