Israeli strikes kill dozens in Gaza in the days after the Hamas disarmament deal, casting doubt on ceasefire diplomacy

Summary

Israeli air strikes killed more than two dozen Palestinians in Gaza over the weekend of August 3-4, even as Trump's Board of Peace envoy met Netanyahu in Jerusalem; the post-meeting statement contained no mention of Israel's territorial withdrawal, The National reported. Al Jazeera's Palestine weekly noted that Israeli strikes "only intensified" in the days following the July 30 Hamas disarmament deal brokered by the Board of Peace. UN News confirmed Israel also violated Lebanese airspace with military aircraft during the same period. Netanyahu reiterated his position that Israel will not withdraw from Gaza lines until Hamas fully disarms. Qatar told reporters separately that progress was being made in broader regional talks, including on US-Iran diplomacy, but gave no specifics on Gaza.

The split

Al Jazeera and The National both documented the widening gap between diplomatic language and ongoing military action: "constructive and detailed" meeting outcomes paired with continuing strikes. Israel's Haaretz provided the Israeli government's framing directly, noting Netanyahu's disarmament-first condition for withdrawal, while also covering Board of Peace pressure for de-escalation. The UN record confirmed the factual baseline of casualties and Lebanese airspace violations with independent authority. Times of Israel carried live updates through the weekend. No source in the feed provided the Palestinian Authority's formal response to the weekend strikes.

By the numbers

• 24+, Palestinians killed in Gaza in weekend Israeli strikes, per UN News
• 6, years the Gaza war has been ongoing since October 2023
• 0, explicit references to Israel's withdrawal timeline in the Board of Peace post-meeting statement, per The National

Why it matters

The gap between the July 30 disarmament deal and continued Israeli strikes signals that the deal's implementation sequence, Hamas disarms first, then Israel withdraws, may not hold in practice. Diplomatic momentum on the Iran-US front could either accelerate a Gaza resolution or be used by both sides to delay it further.

What to watch

• Whether Hamas conditions its disarmament implementation on a verified Israeli withdrawal commitment, not just a stated one
• How Netanyahu's domestic coalition, where far-right ministers have rejected the deal, affects Israeli military conduct in Gaza
• Whether the Board of Peace envoy returns to the region with a revised implementation timeline after the weekend strikes