Doctor Killed, 70% Seizure Ordered: How Gaza's Eid al-Adha Unraveled the Ceasefire

What was supposed to be a week for prayer and family gatherings in Gaza instead marked the effective collapse of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Over the Eid al-Adha holiday, a surge in Israeli airstrikes killed at least 26 Palestinians, a senior doctor was shot dead near his hospital, and the Israeli prime minister openly ordered the military to seize even more territory in direct violation of the truce. These events unfolded against a backdrop of stalled disarmament talks that have left the peace process in a deep freeze.

A Doctor Killed by a Drone Near His Hospital

On Saturday, May 30, the fourth day of Eid al-Adha, an Israeli drone strike near Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah killed Dr. Jamal Abu Aoun, the head of anaesthesia at the hospital . Three other civilians were wounded in the same strike . Earlier that day, a separate strike hit a Hamas-manned police point in the city, killing another Palestinian medical worker, a nurse at Yafa Hospital, and wounding at least three others .

Dr. Abu Aoun’s funeral was held at noon in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital courtyard, a stark ceremony that underscored the near-total absence of safety for medical staff in the enclave . He was the latest in a long line of Palestinian health workers killed since the war began .

Dozens Killed Across a Week of Eid Strikes

The violence did not begin with Dr. Abu Aoun’s death. It escalated sharply starting on the eve of the holiday, Tuesday, May 26, and continued through Friday, May 30. The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) confirmed at least 26 Palestinians were killed across the Gaza Strip during this period . The office reported that 12 of those victims died in three airstrikes on May 26 alone, while a teenage girl succumbed to injuries from a strike the previous day . Gaza's Health Ministry reported an even higher toll for a narrower window: 16 Palestinians killed and 39 wounded in just 48 hours .

Attacks were widespread. On the first day of Eid, an overnight airstrike on a residential building in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City killed at least 10 people and wounded 20 others. Four children were among the dead . Israeli drones struck the Zeitoun neighborhood, and multiple strikes were reported across central and southern Gaza . The holiday was punctuated not by celebration but by the sound of explosions and the rush to dig through rubble.

A Ceasefire in Name Only

The October 2025 ceasefire, brokered by the U.S., Egypt, Qatar, and Türkiye, was designed to halt major combat operations and create a path toward a lasting peace . It set out binding obligations for both sides, including an end to hostilities, a surge in humanitarian aid, and a phased release of hostages and prisoners .

By May 2026, the truce had been hollowed out. Palestinian authorities claim Israel has violated the agreement roughly 3,000 times since it took effect . The UN has documented that 922 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military since the ceasefire was announced, pushing the total death toll since October 7, 2023, to nearly 73,000, according to local health authorities . Both Israel and Palestinian factions trade near-daily accusations of non-compliance, but the agreement has failed to stop the bloodshed . The Eid al-Adha violence was not a sudden breakdown; it was an intensification of a pattern that had been unfolding for months.

Israel Orders Seizure of 70% of Gaza

On May 28–29, 2026, in a direct challenge to the ceasefire, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a conference in the occupied West Bank that he had directed the military to take control of 70% of the Gaza Strip . Under the truce, Israel was permitted to temporarily hold roughly 53% of the territory and was expected to gradually cede ground as part of a multi-phase peace plan .

“At this point, we are fully in control of 60% of the territory of the Gaza Strip… and my directive is to get to… 70%,” Netanyahu said . When an audience member shouted that Israel should take “100 percent,” the prime minister replied, “We’re going in order. First 70 percent… we’ll start with that” .

Instead of withdrawing, the Israeli military has slowly expanded its footprint, squeezing Gaza’s 2.1 million residents into an ever-shrinking space . Hamas immediately condemned the move as a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire . International observers described it as a direct threat to what was left of the truce .

Disarmament Talks Hit a Dead End

The disarmament of Hamas is the central pillar of the U.S.-backed peace plan. Without it, the rest of the agreement cannot advance. But negotiations between Hamas and the Board of Peace (BoP)—the international coalition tasked with overseeing the ceasefire—have effectively been frozen since April 2026 .

Hamas has “staunchly rejected total disarmament,” insisting it will not give up its weapons without the establishment of an independent Palestinian state . Talks in Cairo between a Hamas delegation and the BoP, led by High Representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov, reached an impasse, and Palestinian sources reported they had collapsed .

On May 26, the Board of Peace issued a blunt public statement that left no room for ambiguity: “At this stage, the principal obstacle to full implementation remains Hamas’ refusal to accept verified decommissioning, relinquish coercive control, and permit a genuine civilian transition in Gaza” . The Board pressed the UN Security Council to force Hamas’s compliance, but with no disarmament framework in place and violence intensifying on the ground, the path to a lasting political settlement has narrowed significantly.