On Friday, October 10th of 2025, a ceasefire deal – proposed by Donald Trump – was agreed upon. The United States Israeli governments, and various leaders of Hamas have officially agreed to a deal. This ceasefire has seen the return of 20 living Hamas-taken hostages, as well as nearly 2,000 of Palestinian prisoners. It has seen the slow rollback of Israel’s illegal occupation in Gaza and the West Bank. And while the peace plan is still in its infancy, the prospect of peace is ever growing. However, push-back from both ends of this of the war are already being displayed.
President Trump’s 20 – point peace deal (which can be read here on the BBC website) calls for an end to the military occupation and transfer of weapons to Gaza. A complete return of hostages and remains between the two parties, 15 Gazans for every 1 Israeli. As well as the complete removal of Hamas from any form of power in Israel, with amnesty and safe transfer being granted to every member of Hamas who agrees to live peacefully in accordance with the plan. However, the largest section is that which states the plans to rebuild the Government, infrastructure, economy and entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza. All of this is stated in the peace plan as “a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood,” (U.S. Oct. 10, 2025).
Hamas
The agreement over the ceasefire deal is holding as it enters it’s third week. There is, however, quite a bit of struggle between the two groups. On the side of Hamas, the remains of 19 deceased hostages have yet to be returned. This isn’t in line with the terms of the deal, and Israel has made this point very vocal. Sean Seddon writes, “It (Hamas) accused Netanyahu of impeding its ability to search for hostages’ remains by not allowing heavy machinery and diggers into the Gaza Strip” (Seddon Oct. 17, 2025).
Hamas has consistently denied all accusations of further attacks following the Ceasefire, holding steadfast to their dedication for peace.
Israel
However, Israel continues to grow furious with Hamas’s action, repeatedly accusing them of breaking the ceasefire. This past Sunday, the killing of 2 Israeli soldiers in Gaza – Major Yaniv Kula, and Staff Sergeant Itay Yavetz – was blamed on Hamas by Israeli government. Their deaths mark the first death of Israeli military since the undertaking of the ceasefire plan. In response, Israel carried out a series of strikes across Gaza, which also goes against the terms of the ceasefire deal. In addition, on October 14th Israel continued with the limit of humanitarian aid to Gaza, limiting the 600 agreed upon truck from the UN and other NGOs (non-governmental organizations) down to 300. According to The Independent, “UN humanitarian affairs chief Tom Fletcher has said thousands of aid vehicles would have to enter weekly to tackle widespread malnutrition, homelessness and a collapse of infrastructure” (Reynolds Oct. 17, 2025). And, the major Rafah crossing remains closed off to aid groups.
So, all this to say, hope remains alive for peace. This deal is going on nearly two weeks at time of writing, and is holding on all ends despite the trials and tribulations it still faces. However, Hamas may not be able to retrieve the remains of the remaining dead hostages. This could pose a serious threat further still to the trouble it’s given the ceasefire. Additionally, Israel has continue to act militantly and restrict resources to what is left of the Palestinian and Gazan population in Gaza and the occupied west bank. Regardless, Hamas and Israel have continued to make a clear point of their keenness for the ceasefire, and progress has been being made – 560 pounds of food have made their way into Palestine per day. It seems likely that something may come of this, and we may see a Free Palestine in the near future.
