The Board of Peace acknowledged the stalled ceasefire in Gaza and pressed the United Nations Security Council to force Hamas to disarm and allow for the 20-point agreement to proceed.
In a briefing to the council, Nickolay Mladenov, the High Representative for Gaza, urged member states to use “every means at [their] disposal” to pressure Hamas and other armed factions in Gaza to disarm and submit to a supervised decommissioning process under the internationally backed roadmap established by the Board of Peace.
“At this stage, the principal obstacle to full implementation remains Hamas’ refusal to accept verified decommissioning, relinquish coercive control, and permit a genuine civilian transition in Gaza,” the Board’s report stated ahead of the session.
Hamas has rejected Mladenov’s accusations and his proposed roadmap. Hazem Qassem, the spokesperson for the terrorist group, said the statement from the Board of Peace “reflects continued adoption of the Israeli position and serves as an attempt to justify further Israeli escalation.”
Other critics of the Board of Peace, launched by US President Donald Trump in January, have spoken out against Mladenov's statement, calling the report a one-sided account of the stalled ceasefire, which Israel repeatedly violates.
Mladenov did acknowledge a need for Israeli cooperation with the ceasefire agreement and the UNSC Resolution 2803 in his briefing to the Security Council: “Implementation cannot advance through Palestinian obligations alone. The continued killings, Israeli restrictions, and delays affecting humanitarian flows are not abstract issues.”
Israel has fallen short of its obligation to allow 600 trucks carrying humanitarian supplies a day, and according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, 850 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli strikes since the ceasefire agreement was implemented last October.
US's 20-point ceasefire plan calls for Hamas's complete disarmament
The US brokered a 20-point ceasefire plan that calls for the complete disarmament and decommission of Hamas and the destruction of the extensive tunnel network in Gaza. The roadmap also calls for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the creation of a new technocratic Palestinian government.
Gershon Baskin, an Israeli analyst and former Israeli hostage negotiator, welcomed the road map in the ceasefire agreement developed by the Board of Peace.
“Israel and Hamas should agree to it, and its implementation should begin immediately,” Baskin told The Guardian.
However, Baskin also criticized Mladenov’s characterization of the stalled ceasefire, arguing that Israel also bore responsibility for the breakdown in the truce. He told reporters that Hamas had “indicated its willingness to begin the process of disarmament and decommissioning of weapons.”
Under Mladenov’s plan, the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a panel of 12 Palestinian technocrats created by the Board of Peace, is meant to oversee the disarmament of militant and terrorist groups in the strip. However, Israel has yet to permit the committee members to enter Gaza through Egypt.
Mladenov has stated that three conditions must be met for the NCAG to enter Gaza and successfully transfer power to the new administration: the complete transfer of control over civilian institutions to the NCAG; the complete end of ceasefire violations in Gaza; and a radical increase in aid entering Gaza.
Mladenov and the Board of Peace have acknowledged ceasefire violations on both sides, but repeatedly stated that the disarmament and decommission of Hamas is “not negotiable” and progress on all other parts of the 20-point agreement is held up by this issue.