Amid questions over the length of the fragile Gaza ceasefire, Israel signaled on Sunday that it would not retreat beyond the yellow line, calling it a “new border”.
The statement came from the Israeli army and was announced by army chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir.
“We have operational control over large parts of the Gaza Strip and we will remain on these defense lines. The yellow line is the new border line – serving as a forward defense line for our communities and a line of operational activity,” Zamir said, according to the AFP news agency.
What is the yellow line?
Under the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas brokered by Donald Trump, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had to withdraw to positions behind the yellow line.
The area east of the yellow line, controlled by Israel, represents 53-58% of the area of the Gaza Strip.
It should be noted that the Yellow Line’s status is officially temporary and serves as a de facto military border inside Gaza. Later stages of the peace plan envisage further Israeli withdrawal and the eventual deployment of the International Stabilization Force (ISF).
By the second withdrawal (and deployment of the ISF), Israel’s share of territory in Gaza is expected to be reduced to 40%, before a further reduction to 15% by the third withdrawal.
what’s next
Zamir’s statement on Sunday comes shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signaled a move toward a second phase of the ceasefire.
During a news conference with visiting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Netanyahu said that “very soon Tel Aviv and Hamas are expected to move into the second phase of the ceasefire,” adding that such a move would only happen after the Palestinian militant group returns the remains of the last Israeli hostage.
Hamas has yet to release the remains of 24-year-old Ran Gvili, a police officer who was killed in an attack on October 7, 2023.
The return of Gvili’s remains to Tel Aviv — and Israel’s return of 15 Palestinian bodies in exchange — would mark the completion of the first phase of Trump’s 20-point Gaza peace plan.
“Hamas must be dismantled”
With Israel and Hamas seemingly poised to move on to the second part of the peace plan, Netanyahu has highlighted difficulties with the third phase.
“As I mentioned to the (German) chancellor, there is a third phase, which is to deradicalize Gaza, which is something that people also believed was impossible,” the Israeli prime minister said during a press conference with Merz.
“But it was done in Germany, it was done in Japan, it was done in the Gulf states. It can also be done in Gaza, but of course Hamas must be dismantled,” Netanyahu added.
