EXPLAINER
Within the first section of the ceasefire plan, Israel will stay accountable for practically 60 % of the Gaza Strip.
Within the early hours of Wednesday morning in Gaza, United States President Donald Trump announced that Hamas and Israel had agreed on the first phase of his ceasefire and captive-exchange plan.
In a put up on his Fact Social platform, Trump said : “ALL the hostages will probably be launched very quickly, and Israel will withdraw their troops to an agreed upon line.”
The “agreed upon line” refers to a obscure map shared by Trump on October 4, exhibiting an preliminary Israeli withdrawal zone marked in yellow, later dubbed the “yellow line” by Trump officers.
After negotiations, Israel has agreed to the preliminary withdrawal line, which we’ve got proven to, and shared with, Hamas. When Hamas confirms, the Ceasefire will probably be IMMEDIATELY efficient, the Hostages and Prisoner Change will start, and we are going to create the situations for the subsequent… pic.twitter.com/0VfaMSOqQ1
— Trump Fact Social Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) October 4, 2025
By Sunday or Monday, Hamas is predicted to launch about 20 residing captives, together with the our bodies of about 25 others, whereas Israel will free some 2,000 Palestinians detained in Israeli prisons. Last particulars have but to be confirmed.
The place is the preliminary withdrawal ‘yellow line’?
Israel at the moment controls greater than 80 % of Gaza’s 365sq km (141sq miles) space, together with areas beneath pressured evacuation orders or designated by Israel as army zones.
As soon as the deal is signed, combating could be anticipated to finish instantly, and Israeli forces would withdraw to the road marked in yellow.
The ultimate map has not but been revealed following negotiations in Egypt, however based mostly on the October 4 map, the world contained in the yellow line represents roughly 155sq km (60sq miles), leaving about 210sq km (81sq miles), or 58 % of Gaza, beneath Israeli management, as verified by Al Jazeera’s Sanad staff.
Most notably, Israeli forces will stay in a number of beforehand populous Palestinian neighbourhoods, together with:
- Beit Lahiya
- Beit Hanoon
- Components of Gaza Metropolis’s Shujayea, Tuffah and Zeitoun
- Greater than half of the Khan Younis governorate
- Almost the entire Rafah governorate
As well as, Israel will proceed to manage all crossings out and in of Gaza, together with the Rafah crossing with Egypt.
A whole lot of hundreds of Palestinians have been displaced a number of instances all through two years of struggle and are determined to return to their properties, however the continued Israeli presence in these areas makes that unlikely within the close to time period.
What is meant to occur subsequent?
In accordance with the 20-point plan introduced by Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on September 29 – developed with none Palestinian enter – Israel is to withdraw its forces in three phases, as proven on an accompanying crude map, with every section marked in a unique color:
- Preliminary withdrawal (yellow line): Within the first section, Hamas is predicted to launch all remaining Israeli captives, each residing and deceased, whereas Israeli forces pull again to the road designated in yellow on the map.
- Second withdrawal (purple line): In the course of the second section, an Worldwide Stabilization Drive (ISF) will probably be mobilised to supervise safety and assist Palestinian policing, whereas Israeli forces retreat additional to the road marked in purple, lowering their direct presence in Gaza.
- Third withdrawal (safety buffer zone): Within the ultimate section, Israeli forces are to tug again to a delegated “safety buffer zone”, leaving a restricted portion of Gaza beneath Israeli army management, whereas a world administrative physique supervises governance and a transitional interval.
Even after the third withdrawal section, Palestinians will probably be confined to an space which is smaller than earlier than the struggle, persevering with a sample of Israel’s management over Gaza and its folks.
Many questions stay about how the plan will probably be carried out, the precise boundaries of Palestinian territory, the timing and scope of Israeli withdrawals, the function of the Worldwide Stabilization Drive, and the long-term implications for Palestinians throughout each Gaza and the occupied West Financial institution.
