Israel and Hamas reached a deal to pull their troops out of Gaza and for the Islamist group to disarm, President Donald Trump said on Thursday. But many conditions, obstacles and long periods remain to be fulfilled to completely end the war in the Palestinian region.

The White House statement comes nine months after a ceasefire initially signed between the U.S. and the rebels. Those talks with Hamas had been put on the back burner until now, when the two sides have been negotiating the second phase, which was heavily dependent on Hamas disarmament and the larger scale reconstruction of Gaza.

The agreement will be implemented in a “very well thought out” series of phases, Trump wrote on social media. The Israeli forces will withdraw as the disarmament is carried out and an International Stabilization Force (ISF) will work alongside a new Palestinian police force to maintain security for the Gaza population and its surrounding areas.

The Phased Ceasefire Plan and Disarmament Timeline

Trump’s broad 20-point ceasefire plan includes the militants handing over their arms and ending their sprawling network of underground tunnels. The plan also calls for Israeli troops to pull back, a new technocratic Palestinian government to be installed, international security forces to be deployed and the long-term reconstruction of the enclave.

A Hamas official said Friday that an agreement on disarmament, the most important part of the ceasefire, has been reached, but Israeli officials have not indicated they agree.

Under anonymity, U.S. and Board of Peace officials gave a more upbeat picture of the process of dismantling. They did not give specific dates for when Hamas and other groups such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad would be disarmed, but said the Gaza police force will hand over its weapons to a technocratic, Board of Peace-backed administration in the coming two weeks.

But officials said this police force doesn’t include the large numbers of Hamas militants, nor does it include the group’s heavy weaponry. Later in the process, heavy weapons will be surrendered and tunnels will be decommissioned, a representative of the Board of Peace said, which could be 200 to 350 days.

Israel, which has been extremely skeptical of whether Hamas really has given up its arsenal, or behind-the-scenes control, has been consulted throughout the negotiations, according to the [suspicious link removed] and other officials. Israel is just being asked to follow up on its early commitments to the 20-point plan, which consist of the withdrawal of troops and the end of airstrikes.

A meeting in Washington not long ago between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took place, but it’s still a bit fuzzy what exactly was talked about in the conflict part, like, generally. If Israel does not comply with the deal, Trump will be “very disappointed”, an official from the U.S. said. Israel’s mission to the U.N. hasn’t replied yet to the request for comment.

There’s also Iran, which is a crucial supporter of Hamas, or at least that’s the usual take. The U.S. and Israel apparently kicked off a war against Iran in the early part of February, and the United States Department of Defense monitored some of the military actions while things were unfolding. Even though Iran warned Hamas not to accept the disarmament agreement, Tehran seems so tangled up in its own conflict with the U.S. that it can’t provide the militant group with much help.

Hamas has launched a huge identity change by surrendering its arsenal of rockets, explosives and anti-tank missiles, all of which are enshrined in its founding charter, which advocates for armed resistance. But the group earlier this month dissolved its Gaza government and handed over to a technical committee, thus complying with the ceasefire terms.

The Gaza war really started after the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, where 1,200 people were killed, and 251 hostages were taken, and since then it has had devastating effects. The Gaza Health Ministry said that over 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel retaliatory offensives. Now the Israeli military is basically in control of more than 50 percent of Gaza, so Palestinians are mostly left living in shattered parts of the city and in dirty, tent camps.