Hamas Values the Shift of the Yellow Line in Gaza as a Violation of the Ceasefire

Hamas group doctors. (Hassan Alzaanin/TASS)

JAKARTA - The Hamas militant group considers the shift of the Yellow Line in the Gaza Strip, Palestine as a violation of the ceasefire agreement with Israel in the enclave.

The Israeli military is said to have shifted the position of the Yellow Line, which marks the occupied territory in Gaza, approaching the main road often used by Palestinians.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) pulled troops to the line under an October ceasefire, but Palestinians say the line has shifted forward since then.

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the move violated the terms of an October ceasefire brokered by mediators.

"The continued violations are exhausting civilians and limiting their lives," Qassem said, calling on mediators to intervene and ensure compliance, launching The National (29/4).

Israeli forces put up a yellow-painted concrete block as a marker for the Yellow Line. (Wikimedia Commons/IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

But on the ground, the impact is not just about statements, but more about survival.

"We hold the Israeli side and the mediators responsible for the continuation of these violations and violations of the rights of the people of Gaza in various ways," Qassem said.

"As well as continuing policies that exhaust civilians, hinder their movement, and restrict their lives," he said.

The Yellow Line is a demarcation line that divides the territory into 47 percent under Palestinian control on the west side, as well as 57 percent under Israeli control, according to a map that is part of the Gaza Strip peace plan and the ceasefire announced October 2025.

In recent days, Israeli forces have moved it west again by placing yellow blocks along Salah Al Din Street - the main route connecting the north and south of the Gaza Strip.

For thousands of Palestinians, the change has turned a vital route into a dangerous border.

Meanwhile, The New Arab quoted an Arabic-language media report on Tuesday reporting that Israeli soldiers had turned the so-called Yellow Line in the Gaza Strip into a new border, through the establishment of dozens of new military posts.

The buffer zone, created by the army, which stretches from the north to the south of the area and parallels Salah al-Din Street, with several checkpoints appearing in recent days.

IDF patrol doc in the Philadelphi Corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border. (Twitter/@AvniItamar)

The Arabi21 report said the presence of the checkpoints meant the military presence in the area was no longer temporary and effectively turned the Yellow Line into a new border.

Since Israel established the Green Line in October, the army has targeted and killed every Palestinian who approaches it, and has used the empty area around it to set up military posts.

According to reports, streetlights have been installed around the posts, and can be seen from the higher western part of Gaza.

The forward posts are mostly located in the buffer zone between Rafah and Khan Younis, with other posts in the Ma'an and Bani Suheila areas, as well as east of Deir al-Balah, al-Bureij, Shujaiya, and al-Maghazi.

This is not the first time that there have been reports of the shifting of the Yellow Line in Gaza by Israel into Palestinian territory.

For six months since the ceasefire, Israeli forces have shifted the agreed ceasefire line in Gaza to the west, expanding their control zone and making the precarious situation more dangerous for Palestinians, The Guardian reported last week.

Israeli military doctors in the Gaza Strip. (Source: IDF)

Last month, reports said the Yellow Line had become a permanent de-facto buffer zone on the ground, with 32 military positions and land barriers stretching some 17 kilometers documented.

Last February, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that Tel Aviv would not move "one millimeter" from the line until Hamas disarmed.

The "yellow line" agreed to in the US-mediated ceasefire was supposed to be temporary pending further Israeli troop withdrawals, but the ceasefire, which was partially adhered to, stalled after its first phase amid disputes over Hamas disarmament, and Gaza's continued bombardment by Israel.

Since then, the yellow line has shifted forward in some places, expanding the military-held territory far beyond the 53 percent of Gaza implied in the original truce map.

According to the research institute Forensic Architecture, in December Israel had seized 58 percent of Gaza's territory and continued to advance.

Israeli news site Haaretz said more than 200 Palestinians have been killed near the line in recent months, without giving further details.

The head of the UN Human Rights Office, Volker Turk, earlier this month also highlighted the death of Palestinians due to the changing and not clearly marked position of the Yellow Line.

"Targeting civilians who are not directly involved in hostilities is a war crime, regardless of their proximity to the placement line," Turk said, quoted from the OHCHR website.