Israel-Hamas Peace Negotiations: Two Years of Gaza Conflict and Trump's Diplomatic Initiative

Israel and Hamas have both endorsed the fundamental principles underlying Trump's peace proposal.

On Tuesday, Israeli military forces conducted operations across Gaza using tanks, naval vessels, and aircraft, providing no relief for Palestinian civilians on the anniversary of the Hamas attack that initiated two years of conflict. This ongoing offensive underscores the challenges facing negotiators discussing Trump's peace plan.

According to local residents, Israel continued its military campaign even as Hamas and Israeli representatives began indirect talks on Monday in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh resort. These negotiations address critical issues including Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and Hamas disarmament.

The discussions centered on the US president's proposal are widely regarded as the most promising effort yet to end a devastating war that has claimed tens of thousands of Palestinian lives and destroyed much of Gaza since the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in 1,200 Israeli casualties.

Witnesses in Khan Younis (southern Gaza) and Gaza City (northern Gaza) reported intense bombardment from Israeli tanks and aircraft during the early hours of Tuesday. Multiple districts faced military action from air, sea, and ground forces.

Gaza militants responded by launching rockets across the border early Tuesday, triggering air raid sirens in the Israeli kibbutz of Netiv Haasara, while Israeli troops continued operations against armed fighters within the enclave, according to Israeli military statements.

Commemorating the anniversary of their attack, a coalition of Palestinian factions including Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and smaller militant groups issued a statement asserting that "resistance by all means is the sole and only way to confront the Zionist enemy."

Their joint declaration, issued under the name "Factions of the Palestinian Resistance," stated: "No one has the right to cede the weapons of the Palestinian people. This legitimate weapon will be passed through Palestinian generations until their land and sacred sites are liberated."

Israelis marking the second anniversary of the Hamas attack – during which 251 people were taken hostage to Gaza – gathered at attack sites and at Tel Aviv's "Hostages Square."

"It's like an open wound, the hostages, I can't believe it's been two years and they are still not home," said Hilda Weisthal, 43. "I really hope that all the leaders will make a push and that this war will end."

In Gaza, Mohammed Dib, 49, expressed similar hopes for peace: "It's been two years that we are living in fear, horror, displacement and destruction. We are hoping, with these new negotiations, to reach a ceasefire and a final end to the war."

Israel enters negotiations from a position of military advantage. Its response to the 2023 attack has included a comprehensive offensive to eliminate Hamas in Gaza, assassinations of top Hamas leaders outside the Strip, actions against other Iranian-backed groups like Lebanon's Hezbollah, and operations weakening Yemen's Houthis.

Israeli forces have also eliminated Iran's senior military commanders and struck Iranian nuclear facilities during a 12-day conflict supported by the United States.

However, Israel's military campaign in Gaza, which local health authorities report has killed over 67,000 people and devastated the territory, has isolated the country diplomatically. Several Western nations have recognized Palestinian statehood, and pro-Palestinian demonstrations have emerged globally.

Both Israel and Hamas have endorsed the core principles of Trump's proposal, which calls for cessation of hostilities, hostage release, and humanitarian aid delivery to Gaza.

The plan has garnered support from Arab nations and Western powers. Trump has urged swift negotiations toward a final agreement, which Washington describes as the closest approach yet to ending the conflict.

Trump has invested considerable political capital in efforts to resolve the war.

Even if an agreement is reached during the Egyptian negotiations, significant questions remain unresolved, particularly regarding Gaza's future governance and reconstruction.

Both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have excluded any role for Hamas, which took control of Gaza in 2007 after defeating rival factions in a brief civil war.

While Trump advocates for rapid agreement, an official familiar with the negotiations, speaking anonymously, indicated the current round of talks initiated Monday would likely continue for several days.

An official involved in ceasefire planning and a Palestinian source noted that Trump's 72-hour deadline for hostage returns might prove unworkable for deceased hostages, whose remains may need to be located across scattered sites.

Israel's delegation includes representatives from intelligence agencies Mossad and Shin Bet, Netanyahu's foreign policy adviser Ophir Falk, and hostages coordinator Gal Hirsch. Israel's chief negotiator, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, was expected to join later depending on negotiation developments, according to three Israeli officials.

The Hamas delegation is headed by exiled Gaza leader Khalil Al-Hayya, who survived an Israeli airstrike in Qatar's capital one month ago.

The United States has dispatched special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law who maintains strong Middle Eastern connections, according to White House statements.