US President Donald Trump has announced that the Board of Peace has reached an agreement for the "complete disarmament" of Hamas and other groups in Gaza.
Ghazi Hamad, a Hamas official involved in the negotiations, told Reuters it was a "comprehensive framework" that went beyond the issue of disarmament and would depend on Israel implementing the first phase of an agreement reached last year in Egypt.
Under that agreement, he said Israel was obliged to end its attacks in Gaza and withdraw its forces to where they stood in October, as well as increase the flow of goods and aid coming into the enclave.
Only then, he said, would Hamas agree to hand over its weapons to the new National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, the technocratic body set up to run the enclave. "We insisted to the mediators that Israel must abide by the agreement," he added.
Israeli media reported, meanwhile, that the agreement does not address all of Israel's concerns.
Mr Trump, chairman of the Board of Peace, which was founded when a ceasefire was declared in Gaza, called the agreement a "monumental step" towards lasting peace and security.
"This agreement is a critical step towards Gaza finally being governed by a new Palestinian government that will work closely with the Board of Peace to help the Palestinian people," Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that it would also provide Israel with security.
"Ahead of us is a Gaza rebuilt, governed by Palestinians and at peace with Israel an a political horizon to a meaningful resolution the Israeli Palestinian conflict," Nickolay Mladenov, Mr Trump's Board of Peace envoy for Gaza, said in a statement.
The Board of Peace called the agreement a "historic breakthrough" in a statement on X. "For the first time, Hamas officially has committed to an actionable plan for relinquishing all its weapons, which will be followed by Israeli withdrawal from Gaza," it said.
Israel is reportedly demanding the complete disarmament of Hamas, including the removal of weapons from Gaza and the full demilitarisation of the enclave, as a precondition for any withdrawal.
Hamas, on the other hand, has indicated that it won't disarm until after Israeli troops withdraw. "We will not take any action regarding disarmament prior to Israel's withdrawal from the strip," Mr Hamad was quoted as saying in a media report.
A Hamas source told Reuters that the agreement stipulates that heavy weapons would be stored under the control of a Palestinian administration and would not be transferred to Israel.
Two US officials told Axios that Hamas agreed to the terms of the deal after months of negotiations with mediators. Quoting a source, Axios reported that Iran had tried to convince Hamas not to sign the deal.
A US official told reporters that Israel was "very sceptical that Hamas will disarm", but added that the US was "very confident" that Israel would adhere to the deal.
The disarmament of Hamas was part of Mr Trump's 20-point plan for peace in Gaza, unveiled in October last year. He said the agreement would be carried out in phases.
"As disarmament is completed, Israeli forces will withdraw, and the International Stabilisation Force will work with a new Palestinian police force to take responsibility for Gaza being safe for its residents and its neighbours," Mr Trump wrote.
The International Stabilisation Force, which was also featured in the 20-point plan, will be made up of troops from participating countries and will be charged with training Palestinian security forces in the enclave.
Despite the ceasefire, struck in October last year, Israel has continued to carry out strikes in Gaza. According to local health officials, more than 1,200 people have been killed in strikes in the months since the ceasefire was announced.
Mr Trump said "historic progress" has been made over the past year and thanked mediators Egypt, Qatar and Turkey for their efforts.
"The threat that emerged from Gaza on October 7 will not be allowed to rebuild," he wrote. "Under this agreement, Gaza will finally be in the hands of a new Palestinian government that serves its people."
Mr Mladenov also thanked the UAE, Turkey, Qatar, Egypt and the US for their support throughout the process. "What happens next matters even more. Implementation and verification have to be real. Withdrawal must move in lockstep with decommissioning," he said.
Major sticking points and obstacles remain while the reality on the ground in Gaza, so far, remains far from the goals of the agreement.
Hamas wants Israel to commit to ending attacks on Gaza and withdraw its forces. It is not yet clear what will happen regarding light or personal weapons, or whether the new Hamas stance will be accepted by Israel or the Board of Peace.
