Israel and the Palestinian Hamas Movement recently agreed to implement the first phase of the Gaza Ceasefire Deal on the basis of US President Donald John Trump‘s 20-point peace plan which stipulates that no Palestinians will be militarily forced to leave Gaza and that Israel will agree not to occupy or annex the Gaza Strip. According to the plan, the enclave will “be redeveloped for the benefit of the people of Gaza, who have suffered more than enough”. At the same time, Gaza must be a “deradicalised terror-free zone” that “does not pose a threat to its neighbours”. On October 13, 2025, Israel released around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, while Hamas released all the 20 Israeli hostages. Although the guns have fallen silent, Gazans are worried about their future. They have no idea whether the ceasefire would last long or Israel would keep its promise.

On October 14, 2025, President Trump announced the start of Phase Two of the Gaza Ceasefire Accord, saying: “A big burden has been lifted, but the job is not done. The dead have not been returned, as promised (by Hamas)! Phase Two begins right now!!!” It may be noted that Phase Two of the deal calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza, the formation of a multinational force and the disarmament of Hamas.

Amany Haniya, a resident of Gaza City who has taken refuge in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, recently told CNN that the announcement of a ceasefire would not change everything overnight. According to the mother of three who has been displaced seven times in the last couple of years, it is just the first step towards a healthy future. “This is the first time we have this calmness and peace since days and months and years. Maybe my kids today will have a moment of peace to sleep without nightmares,” she stressed.

As per conditions imposed by President Trump, Hamas would no longer rule Gaza. Then, who will rule the Palestinian territory? Many are of the opinion that anarchy could be worse than the Hamas rule. Hamid Abedul, a Gaza resident, has stated: “I do not want a Hamas administration. But I want the Rule of Law. Let someone take responsibility and ensure it. The consequences of a political vacuum could be dire.“

Following the ceasefire, Gazans are focused mainly on survival and have some immediate questions about the fragile truce, their future and rebuilding the Strip. They are eager to know whether Hamas would agree to drop arms, what about the future of the Palestinian Movement, who would control Gaza and most importantly, when an Independent Palestine would be established. Before the Israel-Hamas War that began on October 7, 2023, Gaza City was the most populous area in the Gaza Strip. Reports from the UN and other organisations have confirmed that a high percentage of houses in Gaza have been either damaged or destroyed, but the figure varies. Some reports have stated that approximately 90% of homes across the Gaza Strip have been impacted, while other sources have provided more precise, though slightly different numbers for specific timeframes. The level of destruction is particularly severe in Gaza City.

Rebuilding Gaza would require massive financial aid. The question arises here: Who would fund the reconstruction project? Based on numerous social media posts, videos and news reports, the work of removing concrete rubble has begun in Gaza, although the process is extremely slow and faces immense challenges. This effort is being made by local municipal teams, residents and UN agencies, mostly to clear access for humanitarian aid and to allow people to return to their homes.

Meanwhile, political analysts have expressed fear that the architectural entities and real-estate brokers who plan to get involved in the multibillion-dollar reconstruction of the war-ravaged Gaza Strip would use the Palestinians as their slaves in the coming days. According to the Gaza and West Bank Interim Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (IRDNA), those entities have decided to spend USD 53.2 billion for the reconstruction of Gaza over the next decade.

Al Jazeera has reported that President Trump discussed the issue with top officials of those entities after disembarking at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv on October 13, 2025 in the presence of his mega-realtor son-in-law Jared Kushner, daughter Ivanka Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin ‘Bibi’ Netanyahu. On February 15, 2024, Kushner had reportedly said: “Gaza’s waterfront property could be very valuable… I would do my best to move the people out and then clean it up.” However, he has changed his plan after the US President made it clear that no Palestinians would be militarily forced to leave Gaza. He might use the Palestinians as low-wage labourers.

With the land-grabbing vultures circling over Gaza, the crisis is not over yet for the Palestinians.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das