Six months after the Gaza ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10, 2025, the territory's 2 million people remain trapped in vast tent camps and damaged apartment buildings, facing stalled aid deliveries and continued state violence. Health workers and other humanitarian workers report little progress in the anticipated surge of medical supplies and other aid, with conditions deteriorating further since the onset of the Iran war. The U.S. 20-point ceasefire plan for Gaza is "largely failing on the humanitarian front," according to a scorecard released Thursday by five international aid groups.
Who Bears the Cost
The human cost of the ceasefire's failure is borne by Gaza's dispossessed population. During the first two weeks of March 2026, trucks entering Gaza declined by 80%, and the price of basic goods increased dramatically. Medical evacuations have stalled, leaving countless without critical care. Maysa Abu Jedian, a displaced woman from Beit Lahiya, stated, “There is pollution and disease. It’s as if there’s no ceasefire at all.” Eyad Abu Dagga, sheltering in a camp in Khan Younis, echoed this sentiment, saying, “The war is still ongoing and life is still terrible as it is.” These conditions persist despite the heaviest fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas-led militants having subsided.
However, the cessation of heavy bombardment has not ended the violence. Israeli forces have carried out airstrikes and fired on Palestinians near military-held zones. Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, with Israel stating its strikes are in response to these and other ceasefire violations. As of Thursday, Israeli attacks have killed 738 people in the six months since the ceasefire, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. This ministry, part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts. Overall, the ministry reports 72,317 Palestinians killed since the war in Gaza began with the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel. Aid continues to be severely restricted, entering through a single, Israeli-controlled border post.
The State's Role in Maintaining Misery
The state apparatus, primarily that of the United States and Israel, has demonstrated its function in managing, rather than resolving, the structural contradictions that perpetuate this crisis. The U.S.-created and Trump-led Board of Peace, which kicked off with $7 billion in pledges and sweeping intentions to resolve conflicts globally, has proven ineffective. Nine days after its initial meeting, the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, and the Board of Peace has not met again. It remains stalled, waiting for Hamas to respond to its proposal on disarming, which the article calls a "major concession." Hamas's charter calls for destroying Israel, indicating the depth of the structural conflict. An anonymous U.S. official stated that Hamas has not been given a definite deadline but added that “patience is not unlimited,” underscoring the coercive nature of the state's demands.
The unwavering focus on Gaza, once at the heart of international outcry, has been deliberately diverted by the rise of a new regional war. This shift has decreased pressure for progress on the ceasefire. Humanitarian groups noted that any forward movement on aid issues in the Palestinian territory has “generally required sustained diplomatic pressure at the highest levels, particularly from the United States. That pressure, however, has not been applied consistently or at the scale needed to secure full implementation.” The Trump administration, along with key Gaza mediators Egypt and Qatar, now focuses on Iran and that war’s effects on their economies, revealing how capital accumulation and geopolitical maneuvering supersede humanitarian concerns.
Capital's Priorities and Liberal Inadequacy
The stated goals of the ceasefire, including disarming Hamas, ending its two-decade rule, deploying an international stabilization force, and beginning vast reconstruction, remain largely unaddressed. These objectives serve to re-establish a stable environment for capital, rather than addressing the root causes of dispossession and conflict. The $7 billion in pledges from the Board of Peace, while presented as humanitarian, are ultimately investments aimed at managing the crisis within the existing framework of power. Nickolay Mladenov, Board of Peace director, told the U.N. Security Council last month that the choice in Gaza is between “a renewed war, or a new beginning; the status quo, or a better future,” adding: “There is no third option.” This framing, typical of liberal solutions, offers a false dichotomy that avoids challenging the fundamental structures of power and wealth concentration. The ongoing violence, the stalled aid, and the continued displacement of 2 million people demonstrate the inherent limitations of such approaches, which extend the life of the system without addressing its foundations. The recent surprise announcement Thursday by Israel, authorizing direct negotiations with Lebanon despite a lack of diplomatic ties, further illustrates the fluid and self-serving nature of state actions in the region, prioritizing strategic interests over the well-being of the working class.