Yossi Schwartz ISL (RCIT section in Israel/Occupied Palestine), 18.06.2024
The US says Hamas is to blame for ceasefire delay – but is it Hamas or Israel?
The white house has announced a few times that Hamas is causing all the problems, and thus, it is responsible for the continuation of the war, while Israel has not just accepted the deal – it produced it. In the real world, beyond the lies, Hamas had made positive statements about the proposal even when it made some amendments to ensure that the deal would end the war. In contrast, Israel refuses to say whether it supports the proposal.
Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh said on Sunday that the group’s position was “consistent with the foundational principles” of the ceasefire proposal. In early May, Hamas accepted an Egyptian-Qatari ceasefire timetable that was said to have only minor differences from the deal currently on the table.
The Netanyahu government has been clear: No end to the war until “Hamas is defeated”. It was reported that Netanyahu told a closed-door meeting that Biden’s portrayal of the proposal was “inaccurate” and “incomplete”.
That has not stopped the US from blaming Hamas as if Hamas does not want to end the war. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Al Jazeera on Thursday that Israel had accepted the proposal and Hamas had not. Biden said on Tuesday that the most significant issue preventing a ceasefire from being agreed upon was Hamas refusing to sign up.
Behind every lie, there is a reason, and the reason that the US administration lies is to let Israel continue the massacres in Gaza. In addition, to turn the people of Gaza against Hamas. The US resolution in the UNSC was the coming presidential elections when most of the traditional voters for the Democratic party oppose Biden’s unconditional support for Israel.
Biden’s proposal calls for a three-stage timetable. In the first phase, fighting would temporarily stop, and some captives would be released while negotiators worked on the next two stages, including a permanent ceasefire.
At the end of the first stage, Israel can renew the war by saying that there is a disagreement between Israel and Hamas. We already know that Netanyahu has been adamant that Israel will not give up its goal of the “destruction of Hamas military and governing capabilities”. Minister of War Yoav Gallant has said Hamas rule in Gaza would not be accepted and that fighting would continue to “remove Hamas operatives from Gaza. At the end of May, Netanyahu’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, said the war would continue for “at least another seven months” Meanwhile, Israel continues to attack Gaza, in Rafah, Nuseirat and elsewhere, leading to hundreds of deaths.
Hamas wants more assurances for a permanent ceasefire deal to assure self-preservation and a lack of trust in Israel’s adherence to the timetable set out. Hamas is presenting its amendments to the ceasefire deal as merely a way to obtain reassurances that Israel will not simply abandon the agreement after the first phase and continue the war.
It seems that the US does not want a regional war where Israel will drag the US to a war against Iran, but in its actions and lies, the US is pushing in this direction. Now is the time to double the pressure on Israel and the US to stop the war and for a permanent ceasefire. Such a result will reflect the fact that Israel was defeated and Hamas won the war.
Stopping the war is not the end result – the struggle for a red and free Palestine must continue until the revolution is won!