Hamas continued its habit of foot-dragging on Tuesday by claiming that the ceasefire proposal that it received from Israel via Qatari and Egyptian mediators, did not meet its demands or those of any Palestinian factions.
In a statement, Hamas said, “The movement (Hamas) is interested in reaching an agreement that puts an end to the aggression on our people. Despite that, the Israeli position remains intransigent and it didn’t meet any of the demands of our people and our resistance.”
However, it said it would review the proposal further and respond to it.
Hamas wants any agreement to secure an end to the Israeli military offensive, a withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and to allow displaced people to return to their homes.
Israel and Hamas sent teams to Egypt on Sunday for yet another round of talks that included Qatari and Egyptian mediators as well as CIA Director William Burns.
Burns’ presence underlined rising pressure from Israel’s main ally the US for a deal that would free Israeli hostages held in Gaza and get aid to Palestinian civilians.
Strain on Israel-American relations
Israel’s relationship with its closest friend has been under severe strain six months into the war, and there is growing American frustration over IDF actions in Gaza, even as it continues to support Israel’s right to defend itself. US National Security Advisor John Kirby said on Sunday that the “frustration” was at the core of US President Joe Biden’s message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in their phone call last week, as Netanyahu took steps to soothe tensions between Jerusalem and Washington.
But all the pressure from the US, and the international community seems to be aimed at Israel. Why? Where is the international pressure on Hamas, who brought this war on their own people after October 7?
How can Hamas, whose own unsubstantiated figures allege that at least 33,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 75,000 have been wounded since Israel began its retaliation, be allowed to put their people through such misery while the world continues to pile pressure on Israel? Where are the pro-Palestinian demonstrators, who have been banging their drums about Israeli genocide since October 7 on the streets of the world? Why are they not standing there demanding that Hamas accept a ceasefire deal?
The behavior of the terror group is one of an organization that believes it is in the driving seat. It is not. Israel’s current preoccupation with a ceasefire has been to secure the release of the living hostages and the return of the bodies of those who have been killed in captivity.
Hostages aside, Hamas has absolutely no bargaining power.
Why has the US not increased pressure on the Qataris, who openly host Hamas leaders (at the request of the American government) and have funded the terror group for years with millions of dollars a month?
Other world leaders have also continued to call for a ceasefire. On Monday, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi published on opinion piece in The Washington Post and Le Monde, stating that “Only a two-state solution will bring peace to the Middle East.”
“It is the only credible path to guaranteeing peace and security for all and ensuring that neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis ever have to relive the horrors that have befallen them since the October 7 attacks,” the statement continued. “The establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state on the basis of the two-state solution, in accordance with international law and relevant UNSC resolutions, to live side by side in peace and security with Israel, is the only way to achieve true peace.”
Op-eds are an interesting way for world leaders to get their message across. Why are the three, especially Sisi – whose own nation has strengthened its border with Gaza to prevent terrorists fleeing – and King Abdullah, who has enough problems at home with Palestinian factions, not piling the pressure on Hamas instead of writing opinion pieces?
The world needs to remember which side is holding hostages in captivity, which side crossed an international border on October 7 and massacred over 1,000 people, and which side is dragging its feet every time there are ceasefire talks.