Israel-Hamas agreement: A tentative first step towards peace

The EPP Group welcomes the announcement of the Israel-Hamas agreement as a hopeful first step toward ending the conflict. The peace plan reflects the goals the EPP Group has pursued. 

“The agreement signed on Gaza is good news: foremost for the surviving hostages, but also for Israelis and Palestinians in general, the region, and the international community. It is now about implementing the agreement completely and letting no one be allowed to find pretexts to avoid it”, said Michael Gahler MEP, EPP Group’s spokesman in Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee.

This agreement must first ensure the safe return of hostages and the disarmament and removal of Hamas from control in Gaza. Only through these steps can the people of Gaza and Israel move toward a sustainable peace and security. The EPP Group also views this moment as a critical starting point for Gaza’s reconstruction, which is closely linked to the peace process. 

"The Gaza peace plan deserves our full support, not because it will be easy, but because peace never is. Implementation will be complex, yet Europe must stand firm in turning hope into concrete progress, step by step, » underlined Antonio Lopez Isturiz, EPP Group's spokesman on Israel.

Many challenges remain, including enforcement, governance, accountability, and maintaining trust. But if implemented in good faith, this agreement could open the door to a new chapter — one defined not by cycles of violence, but by rebuilding, reconciliation, and the shared pursuit of a just and lasting peace. While limited in scope, it represents a necessary beginning — a peace plan focused on Gaza that can lay the groundwork for broader progress in the future.