Israel expanding Gaza ‘yellow line’ to derail ceasefire talks, says Hamas

Palestinian group Hamas said Friday that Israel’s continued movement of the “yellow line” westward inside the Gaza Strip and expansion of control over Palestinian land aim to “blow up the negotiation track and thwart the efforts being made” to consolidate the ceasefire.

The statement by Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem came as Palestinian factions and mediators held talks in Cairo on outstanding issues linked to the ceasefire agreement.

The Israeli army moved yellow line blocks westward by an estimated 300 meters in several areas of the Gaza Strip over the past week and through Friday, especially in the Tuffah neighborhood east of Gaza City, according to witnesses.

The “yellow line” refers to the separation line to which the Israeli army withdrew under the first phase of the US plan to end the war on Gaza. The plan took effect in October 2025, but Tel Aviv has not complied with it.

Since the ceasefire took effect, the Israeli army has killed and wounded dozens of Palestinians, claiming they tried to cross the line.

“The Israeli army’s movement of the yellow line westward in Gaza City, along with accompanying shelling and displacement, represents a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement,” Qassem said.

“The move exposes the inability of the guarantor states and the Peace Council to stop Israeli violations,” he added, stressing that it translates earlier Israeli threats to expand the area under its control inside the Gaza Strip.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged on May 15 that his army occupied 60% of the Gaza Strip and revealed his government’s intention to expand that area to 70%.

“The developments come as negotiations continue in Cairo,” Qassem said, despite what he described as the “positive” position shown by Palestinian factions during talks with mediators.

“Israeli actions reflect its unwillingness to implement the ceasefire agreement and aim to blow up the negotiation track and thwart the efforts being made, while continuing escalation to serve political and electoral considerations,” Qassem said.

Hamas announced Tuesday that acceptable approaches had been reached on several disputed issues linked to the Gaza ceasefire agreement during the talks hosted by Cairo.

“The parties taking part in the discussions reached initial understandings on the thorny issues in the agreement,” Qassem told Anadolu without disclosing the nature or details of those approaches.

The developments come as Israel continues to violate the ceasefire by preventing the entry of agreed quantities of food, medicine, medical supplies, shelter materials and prefabricated homes into Gaza, and by failing to open crossings as stipulated in the agreement.

The violations have killed 981 Palestinians and wounded 3,111 others, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are living in tents and temporary shelters across Gaza after Israel’s war destroyed their homes or left them severely damaged, forcing repeated displacement and leaving them in camps that lack basic necessities and essential services.

Since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, about 73,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 173,000 others wounded, while widespread destruction has affected 90% of the enclave’s civilian infrastructure.

*Writing by Lina Altawell in Istanbul