Israel advances quiet annexation in Gaza and West Bank

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he had "cancelled" the 1997 Hebron Agreement, removing the Palestinian municipality's planning authority over the Old City of Hebron and the Ibrahimi Mosque. The Israeli Foreign Ministry later qualified the move, stating that a prior cabinet decision had transferred planning powers for Jewish communities and holy sites.

Israeli officials described a policy of "creeping" or "quiet" annexation in Gaza, expanding control westward after the United States blocked a larger ground offensive. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights estimates Israeli forces now control roughly 64% of Gaza, up from the 53% stipulated by the October 10 ceasefire. Israel also approved 576 new settlement housing units and demolished homes at four settler outposts.

The conflict claimed more civilian lives, with the Gaza Health Ministry reporting a post‑ceasefire death toll exceeding 1,000. In central Gaza's Bureij refugee camp, an Israeli strike killed Al Jazeera Mubasher cameraman Ahmed Wishah, the 12th Al Jazeera staff member killed in Gaza since October 2023.