US announces next phase of Gaza ceasefire plan as committee is formed to run battered enclave

 https://edition.cnn.com/2026/01/14/politics/us-announces-gaza-ceasefire-next-phase

The US moved to the second phase of the ceasefire deal despite Israeli opposition over the lack of progress on Hamas disarmament and the remains of one hostage, Ran Gvili, still being held in Gaza. In response, Israel has refused to open the Rafah crossing between Israel and Egypt.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent the start of the second phase. “Until Ran returns, the State of Israel cannot close its deepest wound, nor begin the healing and recovery it so desperately needs,” the forum said in a statement. Netanyahu, who did not address Witkoff’s announcement directly, said in a statement that Israel still demanded the return of Gvili’s remains.

Eager to advance what is arguably President Donald Trump’s biggest foreign policy accomplishment in his second term, the US announced the transition into the far more difficult next phase of the deal.

The second phase requires the creation of an International Stabilization Force (ISF) to deploy to Gaza in order to support a Palestinian police force and allow Israel to begin withdrawing from the territory it still occupies. Yet few countries have been willing to commit personnel to the ISF, without which much of the second phase of the ceasefire agreement becomes even more challenging.

The Palestinian Authority welcomed the announcement, thanking Trump for “efforts to consolidate the ceasefire and to move to the second phase of its implementation, including reconstruction.” The so-called Palestinian factions, an umbrella organization of militant groups led by Hamas, also hailed Trump’s efforts “while affirming the factions’ full commitment to continuing the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and the remaining stages” of the plan. Earlier this week, Hamas said it had “issued directives” to cede power from its government agencies to the committee.