As Israel-Iran conflict seems to come to a close, Palestinians in Gaza wonder about their fate

On Monday evening, US President Donald Trump announced that a "comprehensive and complete" ceasefire between Israel and Iran would gradually come into effect.

"Assuming everything works out, which it will," he wrote on Truth Social, "I congratulate both countries for the courage and intelligence to end the so-called '12-day war.'"

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would halt its operations if Israel did the same.

A US official told Reuters that Israel's agreement to the ceasefire was conditional on a full cessation of Iranian strikes.

Earlier today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel had "achieved its objectives" and would abide by the Trump-brokered truce.

Trump declared the ceasefire between Iran and Israel as a "fantastic day for peace."

Meanwhile, in Gaza, the sound of Israeli bombs and drones fills the sky. Streets are littered with rubble, families mourn their dead, and food queues have become scenes of death.

"There's no water, medicine, electricity and even milk for my child. And they [Palestinian politicians] tell us peace has come?" remarked Noha Odwan, a Palestinian woman in Gaza.

"The war has not ended. There is no ceasefire. There is no plan for recovery. The international community has largely ignored the devastation left behind after Israeli strikes escalated alongside the Iran-Israel conflict," Odwan said to The New Arab. 

According to UN figures, more than 80 per cent of Gaza's population was already living below the poverty line before this escalation. Thousands of Palestinian homes have been destroyed in the latest wave of Israeli strikes, which also have levelled entire neighbourhoods.

And yet, while global leaders discuss regional stability, Gaza is treated as an afterthought.

Moment of reckoning?

In a shelter school in Gaza City, Ruba al-Salmi tries to preserve a sense of normalcy for her children. A mother of five, she has started teaching the alphabet to displaced children.

"We want the children to feel that life can continue, even if everything around them is falling apart," she told TNA. "They lost their homes, their cousins, their schools. But they must feel they have a future."

Nasra al-Shawa, another mother of five in Gaza, asked, "Will the war on us stop, too?". The Israeli army killed her three siblings and a couple of her children 13 months ago.

"Day by day, we hope that the war will end, but unfortunately, neither the Israelis nor our Palestinian politicians care about the innocent people. They only care about their own interests," she added.

Despite the blanket media coverage of the Israel-Iran conflict, Gaza is absent from official statements. There is no talk of a truce for Palestinians. There is no humanitarian corridor. Crossings remain sealed. Aid is limited. And international responses, at best, express "concern."

"We hear about ceasefires in Iran and Israel, but we're still pulling bodies from the rubble," Ismail Shalfouh, a paramedic with the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, told TNA.

"Even while others celebrated peace, we retrieved an entire family from under the ruins in al-Nuseirat refugee camp in the central of the Gaza Strip," he said.

This neglect has sparked deep frustration among Palestinians, who see yet another example of what they describe as a "global double standard."

"When an Israeli soldier is killed, the entire world reacts, but when entire families are erased in Gaza, the silence is deafening. Gaza is treated as if it's outside political geography, beyond moral responsibility," Esmat Mansour, a Ramallah-based political analyst, shared his opinion with TNA.

Mansour argues that the ceasefire between Iran and Israel was based on pragmatic calculation. "Iran, like Hezbollah, realised the confrontation was unsustainable, especially with American involvement. So they made a difficult, but rational decision," he said.

He believes Hamas now faces the exact moment of reckoning.

"Currently, maybe no one is blaming Hamas for the war's outbreak. But continuing it despite no gains—and enormous losses—places responsibility on their shoulders," he said. "Like other resistance movements before them, they must weigh whether endurance still serves the people."

Mansour warned that delaying political decisions could make future outcomes worse.

"Hezbollah paid a price for its ceasefire. So did Iran. Hamas must be ready to pay a political price that may be lighter today than tomorrow," he explained. "When you can't protect your civilians, you must think differently. It's what all liberation movements had to do at key turning points."

There are early signs of diplomatic movement. Egyptian reports said that Egypt has called for emergency meetings with Hamas to discuss the ceasefire.

Mansour urged Hamas to revisit the previously rejected frameworks, including the US special envoy to the Mideast, Steve Witkoff's document. "Compare what was offered then to what might be offered now," he said. "Waiting for the perfect deal is dangerous. What Gaza needs now is a bold, protective strategy that puts people first."

Deadly, frustrating endless war

Inside Gaza, public frustration with the status quo is growing louder.

"We are not against the resistance. But how long will we remain fuel for wars others have already left? Iran signed a truce. Hezbollah took a deal. The Houthis sat at the table with Saudi Arabia. Why are we the only ones asked to hold out endlessly?" Abu Nader, a merchant from the Rimal neighbourhood in Gaza City, told TNA.

"If the Axis of Resistance knows this war cannot be won, why are we still dying for it?" he asked.

Maha Ali, another Gaza-based woman, told TNA she "no longer believes in grand narratives".

"I want to go home, not for ideology, but just to safely put my child to bed. If Hamas can negotiate a way out, they should. There's no shame in talking. The real shame is losing everything for nothing," she said.

She added that many in Gaza feel disillusioned with years of empty promises.

"The resistance raised expectations sky-high. But it didn't deliver security. It didn't deliver food. It didn't deliver dignity. Let them lower the ceiling a little, at least protect what's left," she stressed.

TNA contacted Hamas officials for comment regarding these growing calls for de-escalation and political negotiation, but no response was received by the time of publication.