500 Dead Since Trump’s ‘Ceasefire’ as New Gaza Administration Forms Without Palestinian Input

The October 2025 ceasefire, brokered by the Trump administration, is starting to look more like a branding exercise than a real end to the violence. Since the deal was announced, verified reports from The Guardian and Al Jazeera show that at least 500 Palestinians have been killed in ongoing Israeli military operations. The White House calls these 'precision security measures,' but on the ground, the reality hasn't changed much. The destruction is total. We’re looking at 68 million tons of debris covering a strip where the official death toll has climbed past 70,000—and that doesn't even count the estimated 10,000 bodies still lost under the concrete.

If you want to understand where this is heading, follow the money. The focus is shifting from military aid to controlling the reconstruction. Enter the 'Board of Peace'—a technocratic body designed to run Gaza’s future without any input from local Palestinian leadership. It's a move clearly intended to sideline UNRWA, a frequent target of the Trump administration's criticism. What we’re seeing is the pivot to a privatized reconstruction model. It’s a setup where international contractors and regional partners, not the people living there, are the ones positioned to manage billions in development funds.

“The ceasefire is a branding exercise; 500 deaths in four months isn't a cessation of hostilities, it’s a continuation of the war under a new name.”

Yara Hawari of Al-Shabaka has been vocal about the scale of this catastrophe, and her data on the ruins matches up with what experts at The Lancet say about indirect deaths. But there’s a gap in the Jacobin narrative. It doesn't really address Hamas's current operational status or the specific security justifications Israel is using to keep its military engine running. By sticking strictly to a 'colonial occupationLoaded Language' framework, the original reporting misses the nuance of the power vacuum being filled by the Trump administration’s diplomatic plays and Israel’s long-term security restructuring.

We don't have the full roster for this new administration yet, or the final details on the contracts being drawn up for the rebuild. But the fact that the Trump administration is pitching this board as a direct alternative to the UN tells you everything you need to know. It's a strategy to strip away international oversight. For the people on the ground, this isn't just a peace plan—it’s the start of a new administrative reality where 'stabilization' and outside management matter more than local self-determination. Keep an eye out for the private security firms and construction giants; they’re the ones who really stand to gain from this 'Board of Peace' transition.