By Mostafa Salem, CNN
(CNN) — Monday’s release of the last 20 living Israeli hostages and nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees marks a pivotal moment in the war in Gaza , though it’s unclear whether it signals the end of conflict.
US President Donald Trump, the chief architect of the plan, traveled to Israel and Egypt to declare an end to the war in a grand summit of dozens of world leaders, then departed, leaving a trail of unanswered questions in his wake.
Only the first phase of the plan has been implemented and only a few of the 20 points in Trump’s plan have been achieved so far. Many of the thorniest issues – including whether Hamas will lay down its arms, and who will govern Gaza – are yet to be resolved.
Here’s what we know.
Is the war actually over?
Israeli drones, airstrikes and shelling in Gaza stopped this week for the first time in months while Hamas military wing are not targeting Israeli forces in the enclave – meaning the fighting has in fact halted in Gaza.
But the Israeli military still controls around half of Gaza and will only withdraw after Hamas meets further conditions.
Whether it amounts to an end to the war depends on who you ask.
Trump definitively declared that “the war is over” on his flight to the Middle East to preside over the signing of the ceasefire deal. The document signed by Trump and mediators declared an “end” to the war and “opening” of a “new chapter.”
Yet only hours before Trump’s arrival, Israeli Prime Benjamin Netanyahu said that the “military campaign is not over” and that his country’s enemies were “trying to recover in order to attack us again.”
What’s happening next with talks?
Trump told journalists on Monday that negotiations for the next phase of his deal had already begun, but did not divulge who is mediating and what is being discussed. The phases of his plan are “all a little mixed in with each other,” he added.
A regional diplomat and an Israeli source told CNN on Tuesday that phase two talks have already begun in Sharm el-Sheikh between technical teams.
A senior Hamas official, Osama Hamdan, said last week that the negotiations for the second phase would focus on governance of Gaza, with a Palestinian technocratic administrative body running the enclave.
According to Trump’s plan, the Palestinian body would have oversight from an international body called the “Board of Peace,” which the US president will chair, “with other members and heads of state to be announced,” including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a controversial figure in the Middle East due to his role in the Iraq war of 2003.
Hamas has welcomed Arab and Islamic support but has suggested that it would reject an international body ruling Gaza.
“(Negotiations for a second phase) will be easy if its left to the Palestinians, but it will be difficult if the Israelis decide to interfere in our Palestinian matters,” he said.
Will Hamas really lay down its arms?
Hamas maintains that it is willing to hand over governance of Gaza, but has avoided questions related to disarming – a key Israeli demand.
Since the ceasefire took effect, armed members of the group have already redeployed in parts of the strip, clashing with other groups and clans opposing it.
Trump told world leaders in Sharm el-Sheikh that he requires the “demilitarization” of Gaza and the formation of a new civilian police force for reconstruction to begin. According to the deal, Hamas had also agreed to destroy all “military, terror, and offensive infrastructure, including tunnels and weapon production facilities.”
An International Stabilization Force (ISF) is set to be deployed in Gaza once Israel withdraws, but key participating countries are already asking for clarity.
Egypt, which is expected to play a major role in the force, said that it wants the United Nations Security Council to approve its mandate to “legitimize” its presence in the strip so it is not perceived as an “occupying power,” the Egyptian foreign minister told CNN.
Will Israel actually leave Gaza?
The Israeli military has only withdrawn a few kilometers (miles) from its positions and still retains control over half of the enclave. It is expected to withdraw further only when a multinational force is deployed in Gaza.
Israel has committed to a phased withdrawal from the Gaza strip and had accepted Trump’s plan which stipulates that it will not “occupy or annex Gaza,” but Israeli officials caveat that the process of withdrawal will be conditional on Hamas fulfilling its obligations, including disarmament and the demilitarization of the enclave.
Far-right members of Netanyahu’s ruling coalition – whose support is crucial to keeping his government afloat – have fiercely opposed a withdrawal from Gaza and have previously called for encouraging Palestinian residents to leave so Jewish settlements can be established there.
Will there be a Palestinian state?
Perhaps one of the thorniest issues to fully ending the conflict remains the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Many complications hinder the process, including Israeli opposition to a Palestinian state, expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank, the ongoing Gaza conflict, and an aging and corrupt Palestinian leadership, which the US and other Arab nations say requires reform.
Over 150 countries have recognized a Palestinian state, with the United Kingdom, France, Canada, and Australia joining this group last month. The Trump administration has spoken out sharply against allies who recognized Palestinian statehood in recent weeks.
Notably, however, Trump’s Gaza plan acknowledges Palestinian “aspirations” to statehood but doesn’t say if US would recognize such a state.
Trump has recently shown other signs of flexibility. In Sharm el-Sheikh, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas shook hands with Trump – just weeks after the US revoked his visa to attend the UN General Assembly.
Upon leaving Egypt, Trump didn’t rule out supporting a Palestinian state.
“I’m not talking about single state or double state or two state, we’re talking about the rebuilding of Gaza,” Trump told reporters on the flight home.
“A lot of people like the one-state solution. Some people like the two-state solutions. We’ll have to see,” he said. “I haven’t commented on that.”
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