CPC Update July 9th, 2025: Ceasefire Prospects and Settler Attack on Taybeh

This past week has been defined by renewed ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas. Following a successful US-backed ceasefire between Israel and Iran, President Donald Trump has seemed intent to put an end to the war in Gaza. Last Tuesday, Trump had announced a proposal for a sixty day truce between Israel and Hamas, during which the two parties would negotiate further for a permanent ceasefire.

These sixty days would correspond to an increase in humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and a gradual release of the remaining Israeli hostages. The proposal stipulated the phased release of ten living and eighteen deceased hostages throughout the sixty days in exchange for the immediate increase of aid. International organizations would primarily be responsible for the distribution of the aid. The negotiations during the truce would cover further hostage releases in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, and plans for Gaza following the end of the war.

Last Wednesday, Trump reported that Israel had agreed to the necessary conditions for the sixty-day truce to take place. Netanyahu at that point had not publicly endorsed Trump’s plan. Hamas on Friday said that it had submitted a “positive” response to the truce to Egypt and Qatar, who are involved in mediating the ceasefire talks. These developments raised hopes for another temporary pause in the deadly fighting in Gaza.

On Saturday, Israel announced its decision to send a delegation to Qatar on Sunday for ceasefire talks with Hamas. However, Netanyahu accused Hamas of making changes to the truce plan that are “unacceptable to Israel”. A Palestinian official said that, despite its initial acceptance of the deal, Hamas had sought amendments to prevent a resumption of hostilities if the talks failed. Regardless, talks began on Sunday and are ongoing.

Despite these seemingly promising negotiations, the war in Gaza by all means rages on, at least as of now. Friday saw at least 138 Palestinians killed by Israel, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. On Saturday, two American employees of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation — the controversial American and Israeli-backed organization currently responsible for aid distribution in Gaza — were wounded in a grenade attack on its site in Khan Younis. Israel and the US said that Hamas was behind the attack.

Hopes are high for an end to the war that has killed almost 60,000 Palestinians and the release of the hostages who have been held captive for 21 months. However, little differentiates this particular plan from the many prior that have fallen apart. There are no guarantees for its success, especially because little has been heard since Sunday, when talks began.

Meanwhile, on Monday, Israeli settlers attacked the only entirely Christian village in the West Bank, Taybeh. The settlers set fires near Taybeh’s ancient Byzantine cemetery and the Church of Al-Khader, which dates back to the 5th century and is one of the West Bank’s oldest churches. This recent attack follows repeated harassment by Israeli settlers on Taybeh in the last few weeks, and is part of a larger trend of increasing settler violence in the West Bank.