Spotlight on the Israel-Palestinian Conflict (May 13 – 20, 2025)

The IDF in the Gaza Strip

• On May 18, 2025, the IDF launched Operation Gideon’s Chariots in the Gaza Strip, consisting of ground operations and aerial attacks. Hundreds of terrorist targets have been attacked, primarily of Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), including terrorist squads and operatives, weapons depots, booby-trapped buildings, tunnels, rocket launch sites and other facilities, such as command and control centers, some operating from civilian buildings including hospitals and schools.^[2] One IDF soldier was killed during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip (IDF spokesperson, May 13-20, 2025).
• The IDF Arabic-language spokesperson ordered the evacuation of all residents from the Khan Yunis District, including Bani Suheila and Abasan, directing them to go to the al-Mawasi area. He warned that the IDF would launch an “unprecedented attack” and emphasized that “from this moment forward, the areas will be dangerous combat zones” (X account of the IDF Arabic spokesperson, May 19, 2025). Palestinian media published pictures of Gazans complying with the IDF’s directive and moving westward (Telegram channels of Hamza al-Masri and Shehab Agency, May 19, 2025).

    
Right: The evacuation map of the Khan Yunis area (X account of Avichay Adraee, May 19, 2025). Left: Gazans leave Khan Yunis (Shehab Agency, May 19, 2025)

• On May 13, 2025, an aerial attack targeted an underground Hamas command and control complex built beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, destroying underground terrorist facilities. The target was reportedly Muhammad al-Sinwar, considered the head of Hamas’ military wing in the Gaza Strip (IDF spokesperson, May 13, 2025). “Sources” reported that al-Sinwar’s body was discovered in a tunnel along with ten of his aides, and that Rafah Brigade commander Muhammad Shabaneh was also killed in the attack (al-Arabiya, May 18, 2025). Israel has not confirmed al-Sinwar’s death, but Defense Minister Israel Katz said indications point to his death (Israeli media, May 18, 2025). Osama Hamdan, senior Hamas figure in Lebanon, denied al-Sinwar’s death and claimed Israel was attempting to justify an attack on a hospital (Tehran Times, May 19, 2025).
• Hamas’ ministry of health in the Gaza Strip reported that more than 500 “new” fatalities were brought to hospitals in the Gaza Strip during the past week. According to the ministry, since the end of the ceasefire and the renewal of IDF operations on March 18, 2025, 3,340 people have been killed and 9,357 wounded, [allegedly] bringing the total since the war began on October 7, 2023, to 53,475 dead and 121,398 injured (Telegram channel of Hamas’ Ministry of Health, May 13–20, 2025). Hamas accused Israel of intensifying its aerial attacks in the Gaza Strip and of employing a policy of scorched earth, causing massive destruction in residential neighborhoods, refugee camps, hospitals, mosques and aid centers. Hamas accused the international community, led by the UN and the Security Council, of apathy (Telegram channel of Hamas in Judea and Samaria, May 16, 2025).

Rocket fire

• This past week five rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip at the Israeli communities near the Gaza border. Three were intercepted and two landed in open areas. No injuries or damage were reported (IDF spokesperson, May 13-20, 2025). The PIJ’s military wing claimed responsibility for a barrage of rockets targeting Ashdod, Ashkelon, Sderot and the communities near the border (Telegram channel of the Jerusalem Brigades, May 14, 2025).

• This past week indirect negotiations were held in Qatar between Israeli and Hamas delegations in an attempt to advance a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and secure the release of the hostages. However, Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman stated that despite the efforts of Qatar Egypt, and the United States, a “fundamental gap” remained between Hamas and Israel which the current round of talks had not bridged. He said one side sought a comprehensive agreement for Gaza, while the other wanted a partial deal. He said the fighting would only be ended by diplomacy and warned that escalation would result in further Gazan and hostage casualties (Al Jazeera, May 20, 2025).
• Senior Hamas figures reiterated the organization’s position in favor of an overall agreement which would end the war and include the release of all the remaining hostages, dead and alive, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, alongside humanitarian aid and reconstruction. They also said they were continuing direct talks with the United States and accused Israel of blocking progress in the negotiations despite the “gesture” of releasing Israeli-American hostage Idan Alexander:
  • Senior Hamas figure Taher al-Nunu said in an interview that after the release of the “Israeli-American soldier,” Hamas expected the United States to exert pressure on Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. He accused Prime Minister Netanyahu of not being interested in the “prisoners” [hostages] and of insisting on continuing the war. He added that efforts to end the war were ongoing, but Israel “stubbornly” rejected all mediator proposals for a ceasefire and had no serious offer to end the war. He said any prisoner exchange deal had to be part of an agreement that guaranteed the end of the war, and they would not agree to phased or partial agreements which allowed Israel to resume fighting (al-Araby TV Telegram, May 15, 2025).
  • Bassem Na’im, a member of the Hamas political bureau member, confirmed that direct talks were taking place between Hamas and the United States regarding an agreement for the Gaza Strip and said he believed President Trump could mediate a deal. He claimed Hamas had presented its proposals both through intermediaries and directly to American officials, including demands for a prisoner exchange, Israeli withdrawal, humanitarian aid entry and reconstruction without “forced displacement.” He added that Hamas was prepared to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to an independent and politically unaffiliated Palestinian body and was even prepared to step down from government in exchange for ending the war (Sky News, May 15, 2025). On another occasion, he said demands to disarm the “resistance”^[3] or exile Hamas’ leadership were red lines [which Hamas would not allow to be crossed], and that the issue of their weapons would only be discussed after the establishment of a Palestinian state. He added that Hamas agreed to Egypt’s proposal to form a committee to manage the Gaza Strip (Rudaw, May 19, 2025).
  • Muhammad Nizal, a member of the Hamas political bureau, claimed that the movement was prepared for a prisoner exchange deal in which all the Israeli hostages, dead and alive, would be released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners according to the principles of previous deals. He said Hamas was not acting out of charity and would not agree to releases without compensation, and made it clear to the American administration that no full deal was possible without ending the war. He added that the release of Idan Alexander was a tactical gesture to create a positive atmosphere, but had caused friction between the Trump administration and Netanyahu, which was “a political achievement’ for Hamas (Ultra Palestine, May 15, 2025).
  • A “Hamas source” claimed that Israel was trying to avoid reaching an agreement, adding that the Hamas delegation representing the Palestinian “factions” at the negotiations in Doha was open to any possibility that could end the war and achieve the Palestinian people’s “just demands.” The source said that Prime Minister Netanyahu had to stop stalling so that progress toward an agreement could be made, even in two stages, as long as the second stage led to a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire. According to “Hamas sources,” Israel continues to insist on a partial deal with no guarantees for a second phase or for ending the war, a condition the Palestinian factions reject (al-Sharq al-Awsat, May 18, 2025).

The situation in the Gaza Strip

• On May 19, 2025, five UN trucks carrying humanitarian aid entered the Gaza Strip through the Kerem Shalom crossing. It was the first entry of aid trucks since the crossings were closed in March 2025, made possible following a decision by Israel’s political echelon and a recommendation from the IDF (X account of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, May 19, 2025). Hamas’ media information office in Gaza reported that only nine trucks carrying food for children were allowed in and described it as “a drop in the ocean of needs” (Telegram channel of the Palestinian Media Center, May 20, 2025).
• “Palestinian sources” reported a deterioration in the situation of thousands of displaced Gazans who were living in tents because Israeli attacks had destroyed their houses. Reports described difficult living conditions including extreme daytime heat and nighttime cold, and makeshift tents which offered neither protection nor insulation and reportedly there are infestations of insects and rodents. There is a severe shortage of clean water, the sewage system has been destroyed, and overcrowding as entire families are crowded together under thin plastic sheets (al-Aqsa TV, May 17, 2025).
• Amid intensified Israeli attacks in Gaza, including on Hamas infrastructure operating in or near hospitals, the Gazan ministry of health continued to promote its narrative of hospital paralysis:
  • The Hamas ministry of health in Gaza claimed that recent attacks on the European Hospital in Khan Yunis caused severe damage to sewage lines, wards and roads leading to the hospital. As a result, the hospital, which has 28 ICU beds, 12 incubators, 260 general beds, 25 emergency beds and 60 oncology beds, ceased operations (Telegram channel of Gaza Health Ministry, May 15, 2025). Marwan al-Hams, director of field hospitals in the Ministry of Health, said 70% of the hospital’s activity had stopped. Most departments were shut down, except for the ICU (Ultra Palestine, May 14, 2025).
  • Hamas’ ministry of health claimed that IDF forces had intensified the attack on the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahia and its surroundings with heavy fire, preventing patients, staff and medical supplies from reaching the hospital, resulting in a total shutdown. It claimed that following the destruction of the Beit Hanoun Hospital and Kamal Adwan Hospital, and the shutdown of the Indonesian Hospital, all public hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip had ceased functioning (Telegram channel of Gazan ministry of health, May 18, 2025). Muhammad Saleh, director of the al-Awda Hospital in the Tel al-Zaatar area, said that the Indonesian Hospital, also located in the area, had begun transferring patients to hospitals in Gaza City (Anadolu Agency, May 18, 2025).
  • Saleh reported that all departments of the al-Awda Hospital were damaged by aerial attacks, including medical gas systems, doors, windows and ceilings. Despite [allegedly] not receiving medical supplies for over 80 days and no fuel for 35 days, and the closure of two main operating rooms, the hospital staff continued to perform urgent and lifesaving surgeries in two other operating rooms, with all elective surgeries postponed (Anadolu Agency, May 18, 2025).
  • Khalil Daqran, spokesperson for al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, reported a total collapse of the healthcare system in the Gaza Strip because of a critical shortage of blood units caused by severe malnutrition, classified at the fifth and most severe stage by the World Health Organization. Due to the attacks and halted supply deliveries, the population cannot donate blood, severely hindering treatment of thousands of casualties. Approximately 85% of the health system has [allegedly] been destroyed, and medical capacity in the Gaza Strip is extremely limited (al-Aqsa TV Telegram, May 17, 2025).

Governance

• Fatah activist Muneir al-Ja’aghoub reported that Hamas was summoning journalists and political activists for interrogation at the internal security headquarters in Gaza and questioning them about their social media posts, as was the case with activist Omar Abd Rabbo, who was released after signing a pledge not to criticize the movement. He claimed that some of the detainees reported being humiliated or abused during the interrogations (Muneir al-Ja’aghoub Facebook page, May 16, 2025).
• Hamas’ Sahem units in the Gaza Strip announced the execution, under sharia law, of two young thieves from the Sheikh Radwan area, stating that they would continue to “act harshly” to maintain internal order and prevent anarchy (Telegram channel of the Sahem units, May 15, 2025).
• On May 17, 2025, dozens of residents gathered at the al-Mira Junction in central Gaza City and called for an immediate ceasefire and an end to the cycle of violence. Protesters held signs calling to stop the bombings, allow the entrance of humanitarian aid and ensure civilian safety in the Gaza Strip (Telegram channel of journalist Hamza al-Masri, May 17, 2025).
• As Beit Lahia residents fled following escalating security tensions, a protest scheduled for May 17, whose theme was “Enough with Israeli destruction and Hamas’ gamble,” was canceled. However, the organizers issued a sharply-worded statement against Hamas’ rule, accusing the leadership of trading in civilian blood, betraying the “resistance,” turning the people into pawns in an unclear war, stealing humanitarian aid and totally failing to protect civilians. The statement called for Hamas rule to be ended immediately, saying the people were hostages and would soon revolt (Facebook page Beit Lahia Movement, May 17, 2025).

• On May 19, 2025, after the IDF’s evacuation order for the Khan Yunis district, an anti-Hamas, anti-war protest was held, attended by dozens of people in western Khan Yunis. Chants included “Hamas out!”, “Stop the war!” and “Stop the displacement!” as well as slogans against senior Hamas figures (Telegram channel of Hamza al-Masri, May 19, 2025).

      
Anti-Hamas protest in Khan Yunis (Telegram channel of Hamza al-Masri, May 19, 2025)

• The Egyptian foreign minister stated that once a ceasefire was achieved in the Gaza Strip, an international conference for reconstruction would be held in Cairo. He added that halting the killing and allowing humanitarian aid into the strip were Egypt’s top priorities, and that Egyptian mediation efforts continued in coordination with Qatar and the United States to end the cycle of violence and resolve the severe humanitarian crisis in the Strip (al-Qahera News, May 16, 2025).
• Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas instructed the Fatah leadership and PLO “factions”^[4] to renew contact with Hamas and integrate it into the Palestinian political system to reach an agreement which would include restoring control of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority. He said the agreement had to be based on national unity, recognition of the PLO as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, the establishment of a state within the 1967 borders with Jerusalem [sic] as its capital, and the unification of the political, security and legal systems. Both direct and indirect dialogue between the sides reportedly continues, with Hamas willing, in principle, to establish a state within the 1967 borders and discuss settling disputed issues, but demanding a broad national dialogue and reliance on prior understandings. Despite many past reconciliation efforts, it was noted that the PA believed the events since October 7, 2023, had created a new opportunity to resolve the situation (al-Sharq al-Awsat, May 15, 2025).
• Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the PLO Executive Committee, called the Gaza Strip “an inseparable part of the Palestinian territories” and under the legal, political and geographic jurisdiction of the “State of Palestine.” He rejected President Trump’s remarks about United States control in Gaza, saying Gaza “is not for sale or rent, but a land of resistance, suffering from hunger, siege and Israeli occupation.” He added that any talk, particularly American, about controlling the Strip constituted “an attempt at occupation” (Sputnik in Arabic, May 17, 2025).

• Hamas welcomed the calls from Spain, Norway, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta and Slovenia to end the fighting in the Gaza Strip and lift the “siege,” and expressed appreciation for the stance of French President Macron. Hamas claimed it reflected “a moral conscience in the face of the occupation’s crimes,” and called on international and Arab leaders to take concrete steps to end the war and bring in humanitarian aid (Telegram channel of Hamas in Judea and Samaria, May 17, 2025).
• Hamas also welcomed statements by leaders of the UK, France and Canada who said their countries would take action against Israel if it did not stop its “renewed military offensive in the Gaza Strip and lift aid restrictions.” Hamas called on Islamic and Arab states, the European Union and the world in general to take urgent steps to stop the “aggression” (Telegram channel of Hamas, May 19, 2025).
• Osama Hamdan, Hamas figure in Lebanon, thanked the Houthi leadership in Yemen for their activity in support of “Palestine.” He said Yemen had taught two lessons, support for the “resistance” and steadfastness in the face of “American aggression” and “forcing it to retreat” [sic]. He added that the bond between Ansar Allah [the Houthis] and the “resistance in Palestine” had become very strong and would continue “until victory” (al-Masirah, May 18, 2025).
• A Hamas delegation led by political bureau members Bassem Na’im and Osama Hamdan met in Tehran with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (Tasnim, May 19, 2025).

Terrorist attacks

• Palestinian terrorists carried out two attacks this past week, killing one Israeli civilian and injuring a civilian and a police officer:
  • Shooting near Bruchin: On the evening of May 14, 2025, shots were fired at a vehicle carrying an Israeli couple near the settlement of Bruchin in Samaria. The woman, who was en route to the hospital to give birth, was critically injured and died shortly after. Her husband was superficially injured. IDF forces pursued the terrorist, who fled the scene (IDF spokesperson, May 14, 2025). On May 17, during searches in the village of Bruqin, a terrorist carrying a suspicious bag ran toward Israeli security forces. The forces shot and killed him. A rifle was found in the bag and he was suspected of carrying out the attack (IDF spokesperson and Israeli media, May 17-18, 2025). Hamas claimed the dead terrorist as one of its operatives and a released prisoner (Telegram channel of Hamas in Judea and Samaria, May 18, 2025).
  • Stabbing in Jerusalem’s Old City: On May 16, 2025, a police officer attempted to question an Arab-Israeli suspect who approached the Chain Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City. The suspect lunged at him and stabbed him in the back; the terrorist was shot and killed. He was 17 years old from Beit Hanina. The officer was wounded (IDF spokesperson and Israeli media, May 16, 2025).

Counterterrorism operations

• This past week Israeli security forces continued the counterterrorism operation in northern Samaria. Forces operated in the village of Beita near Nablus and destroyed a lab in Tulkarm containing over 200 explosive devices and 150 kg of explosive materials. Five armed terrorists barricaded in a house in the village of Tamun, in the Tubas area, were killed. Regular counterterrorism operations continued elsewhere in Judea and Samaria, during which dozens of wanted individuals were detained and weapons and explosives were seized. A rock-throwing terrorist squad was dismantled (IDF spokesperson, May 13-20, 2025). The Jerusalem Brigades, the PIJ’s military wing, confirmed that five of its operatives from the Tamun platoon of the Tubas battalion were killed in clashes with “the enemy” (Telegram channel of the Jerusalem Brigades, May 15, 2025).
• Israeli security forces detained four Arab-Israelis from the northern Israeli towns of I’lot and Reina, whose fathers live in Tubas, on suspicion of serious weapons offenses. The investigation revealed that some of the suspects had transmitted classified information about Israeli security forces’ activity in Tubas to the enemy, helped terrorists escape and participated in marches in Judea and Samaria while carrying weapons. One suspect also helped transfer funds to terrorists, and several suspects transferred weapons while exploiting their status as Israeli citizens (Israel Police and Shin Bet spokespersons’ units, May 16, 2025).

Diplomatic activity

• PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas participated in the Arab League summit held in Baghdad. On the sidelines of the summit he met with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, the Russian President’s special envoy Mikhail Bogdanov, Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Mahmoud Abbas briefed them on recent developments in the Palestinian arena, especially the war in the Gaza Strip, and called for an end to the war, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the entry of humanitarian aid, transfer of responsibility for the Gaza Strip to the PA, and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. He also called for an end to Israeli “aggression” in Judea and Samaria and east Jerusalem, and urged promotion of the two-state solution (Wafa, May 16-17, 2025).

    
Right: Mahmoud Abbas meets with the President of Iraq. Left: Mahmoud Abbas meets with the Lebanese Prime Minister (Wafa, May 16, 2025)

• In his speech at the Arab League summit in Baghdad, Mahmoud Abbas urged Arab leaders to adopt a plan to end the war in the Gaza Strip and advance a comprehensive peace. His proposal included a permanent ceasefire, release of “prisoners,” entry of humanitarian aid and a full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. He emphasized the need to transfer civilian and security responsibility for the Strip to the PA, with disarmament of Hamas under Arab and international support, and the reorganization of the Palestinian security forces in Gaza. He also proposed an international reconstruction conference in Cairo, ending Israeli unilateral measures in Judea and Samaria and east Jerusalem, and beginning a political process bound by time leading to the implementation of the two-state solution and international recognition of a Palestinian state. He expressed willingness to hold general elections “once conditions allowed,” and declared the continuation of political reforms, including appointing a vice president, enacting a general amnesty law, upholding the rule of law and unifying institutions and legitimate arms (Wafa, May 17, 2025).

• The summit’s concluding statement called on the international community to exert pressure to end the “bloodshed” in the Gaza Strip. The leaders also rejected the “displacement” of the Palestinian people and the need to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza (Iraqi News Agency, May 17, 2025).
• Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the joint statement by the leaders of the UK, France, and Canada calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Gaza and urgent delivery of humanitarian aid. His office said the statement was consistent with the PA’s position calling for implementation of the two-state solution, release of all prisoners and detainees, full IDF withdrawal from Gaza and removal of aid restrictions. It also noted that the statement included a condemnation of continued settlement construction in Judea and Samaria, labeling it a violation of international law and “an obstacle to peace.” The office reaffirmed the PA’s readiness to assume full responsibility for managing the Gaza Strip (Wafa, May 19, 2025). Hamas also welcomed the statement and called on Islamic and Arab countries, the EU and “the rest of the world” to “take action to stop the aggression” (Hamas Telegram channel, May 19, 2025).

The PA security forces

• On May 13, 2025, Palestinian media reported that PA security forces had shot and killed a young man named Rami Zaharan in his car in the al-Fara’a refugee camp near Tubas. Security operatives reportedly ambushed Yazan Zaharan, Rami’s brother, who was wanted by Israel, and opened fire on the car Rami was driving (Quds Agency, May 13, 2025). PA security spokesperson Major General Anwar Rajoub reported that while a security force was planning to arrest a wanted criminal in the Tubas district, it was shot at by criminals and returned fire. One of the shooters, later identified as a leader of “security chaos” in the area, was wounded and later died (Wafa, May 13, 2025). Following Zaharan’s killing, Hamas accused the PA security forces of ongoing Palestinian bloodshed and of subsequently “executing” an elderly man who was hit by gunfire aimed at a car in eastern Jenin. The movement warned of the consequences of the security forces’ actions and their impact on national and social cohesion, and called for unified national resistance to the “unpatriotic conduct” and pressure to stop the “serious violations” (Hamas Telegram channel in Judea and Samaria, May 13, 2025). The PIJ’s military wing claimed Rami Zaharan as an operative in the al-Fara’a refugee camp platoon of the Tubas battalion (Jerusalem Brigades Telegram channel, May 14, 2025).
• PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas convened a meeting of commanders of the security forces, attended by his deputy Hussein al-Sheikh. He was briefed on activities of Operation Defending the Homeland, launched in December 2024 to enforce the rule of law and improve the safety of local residents. Mahmoud Abbas praised the forces’ efforts despite “difficult circumstances,” and stressed the need for full coordination among the agencies and the importance of enforcing the rule of law while maintaining residents’ dignity and security (Wafa, May 14, 2025).