Gaza Ceasefire in Danger of Crumbling
As the first stage of the Hamas-Israel ceasefire crosses the halfway point, the agreement may be fraying.
Hamas said on Monday that it will postpone the release of more Israeli hostages “until further notice.” The next release was scheduled for Saturday, 15 February. However, Hamas said that Israel had violated the ceasefire by shelling and instigating skirmishes, by delaying the return of Palestinians into northern Gaza, and blocking supplies from entering the region.
As a result, Israel cancelled all leave for its soldiers in the area and said discontinuing the release of hostages would violate the ceasefire agreement. U.S. President Donald Trump also weighed in at a press conference, saying that the decision would be Israel’s, but also issuing a threat that “all hell is going to break out” if the hostage release does not move forward as planned Saturday. When asked directly, Trump did not specify if the United States would involve itself in the conflict more directly and he declined to specify what he meant by the vague threat. “Hamas will find out what I mean,” he said.
Hamas has used hostage releases as propaganda opportunities, creating ceremonies with heavily armed Hamas fighters among throngs of cheering Palestinians. Hamas displays anti-Israel banners and has forced the hostages to sign letters thanking the organization for its kind treatment. In one handover on 8 February, Hamas sparked outrage when it released three malnourished and emaciated Israeli hostages.
Hamas’s announcement on Monday that it would delay further hostage releases came not long after Trump said on Fox News that Palestinians would not be allowed to return to Gaza as part of his plan to redevelop the area. The president announced the idea at the end of a visit from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, in which he said, “The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip.”
The administration described the move as a development project that could take 10 to 15 years. There were few specifics regarding how this would be accomplished, including whether or not it would involve U.S. military troops or how the Palestinians would voluntarily not return.
Palestinian officials, as well as a wide range of leaders from other countries, including Egypt, Germany, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, widely rejected the idea, many with harsh condemnation. In contrast, Netanyahu called the idea “visionary.”
As part of the announcement, Trump said, “We’ll own [Gaza] and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings.”
However, as New York Times reporter John Ismay pointed out, the Trump Administration has stopped funding the organizations most likely needed in such an effort.
“On January 25, the State Department issued a stop-work order to all of the nonprofit organizations it funds to find, remove, and destroy unexploded munitions around the world,” Ismay wrote for the Times. “Many of those charities would almost certainly be called on to clear Gaza once the fighting stops.”
Jordan King Abdullah II is visiting the White House today, 11 February, and will undoubtedly discuss Trump's idea. But first, the fighting between Israel and Hamas must end—which is complicated by the ceasefire that appears to be in jeopardy in the first stage. In addition to the release of hostages and prisoners, the first stage calls for Israel to withdraw from Gaza’s largest cities and allow for an increase in humanitarian aid into the region.
The second stage, set to begin in less than three weeks, calls for an official agreement to end the war, with goals and success markers still to be negotiated—negotiations which have not proceeded with much success as of yet. The final, third stage, marks the end of the war and the complete withdraw of Israeli troops from Gaza and the return of those killed in the war.
