The Gaza ceasefire agreement reached last week at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit contains several clauses, and many points are outlined in US President Donald Trump’s plan.
However, none of them address the critical question: What happens if Hamas violates the terms?
In other words, each party entered the agreement knowing what they are supposed to do, but it is unclear what happens if the other fails to comply.
What happens if Israel detects Hamas activity in Gaza?
Unlike Lebanon, the Trump plan and agreement do not even include a mechanism of international oversight by multiple countries to monitor the ceasefire.
There is no entity to which complaints can be made, and if it fails to do its job, Israel is not given the right to act or strike independently.
In all the agreements so far, there is no clear directive on when and how Israel is allowed to take action against Hamas.
How will disarmament be implemented?
Trump speaks of disarming Hamas, and the plan itself mentions it as well. But no one has yet explained how, when, or, most importantly, whether there is a deadline for Hamas to disarm.
Without a clear timeline, Hamas could use the opportunity to amass more power, eliminate rivals, instill fear in the Gaza Strip, and continue to take control of humanitarian aid.
Hamas has already signaled that it is unwilling to fully disarm, insisting on retaining light arms. Another unresolved question is: Who will confront Hamas and force it to relinquish its weapons?
What have the Arab states received?
Trump succeeded in getting Turkey and Qatar to pressure Hamas, and is expected to recruit other Arab countries for a task force in Gaza. They likely did not agree to do this for free.
Qatar has already secured a defense alliance with the US administration, and Turkey is interested in acquiring the F-35 fighter jets – these are the public aspects.
Whether there have been any behind-the-scenes agreements that Israel is not yet aware of, which could strategically jeopardize Jerusalem, is up in the air.