7am Why the peace plan for Gaza has stalled
Dec 18, 2025
Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent for The Economist, delivers insightful analysis on the stalled peace plans for Gaza. He highlights the tragic human cost of ongoing attacks and discusses the complexities of the ceasefire phases. Carlstrom explains the impasse between Hamas and Israel over disarmament, critiques small-scale reconstruction proposals, and warns of Palestinians' limited influence in Gaza's future. With regional dynamics shifting, he questions who will truly enforce any peace agreement.
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Ceasefire Doesn't Mean Safety
- Gaza remains in dire humanitarian condition despite a ceasefire, with flooding and hypothermia killing infants and damaging shelters.
- Gregg Carlstrom emphasizes the ceasefire's weakness shown by repeated Israeli strikes and catastrophic storm impacts on tent cities.
Storms Devastate Tent Cities
- A winter storm flooded tent cities and caused babies to die of hypothermia, with families digging ditches by hand to save shelters.
- Greg Carlstrom recounts medics reporting an eight-month-old died of exposure after floodwaters inundated her family's shelter.
Phase Two Has Stalled
- Phase one measures occurred: hostages freed and Israeli pullback to the Yellow Line, but phase two reconstruction and withdrawals stalled.
- Gregg Carlstrom warns Hamas's refusal to disarm blocks further Israeli withdrawal and may make the Yellow Line permanent.