Editorial: Give peace a chance

For now, Israel and Hamas should not violate the terms of the truce agreement as it would undo the mediation efforts made by Qatar and other countries

There are no winners in any war. There are only deaths, devastation and human suffering on both sides. The short truce between Israel and Hamas to facilitate the release of hostages and the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza is a welcome development in the midst of unspeakable suffering that the war has inflicted on Palestinians. The ceasefire deal involves release of 50 hostages held captive by Hamas in return for the release of 150 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and allowing increased flow of international aid to the battered region. Though temporary, the agreement will bring the much-needed immediate relief and provide a window of opportunity for the warring sides to work out a more sustainable peace plan that ends the misery of the people trapped in a war. In the long term, an independent Palestine state, alongside Israel, is the only solution. For now, both sides should not violate the terms of the truce agreement as it would undo the mediation efforts made by Qatar and other countries to bring Israel and Hamas to the negotiating table. Much will depend on whether Hamas will release all hostages or keep some of them back as a bargaining chip. A sense of fatigue is creeping into the region as it grapples with the deadly consequences of the ongoing war, triggered by the October 7 Hamas attack. Public pressure has been mounting in Israel to secure the release of all hostages and suspend the military offensive, ostensibly aimed at totally eliminating Hamas.

Since the outbreak of hostilities, Israel has imposed a near-total siege on Gaza, largely preventing food, water, fuel and medicine from coming in and causing a humanitarian crisis for the 2.3 million Palestinians who live there. About 1.7 million Gazans have been displaced from their homes. Aid and medicine have been trickling in for weeks since the United Nations was permitted to bring in shipments from neighbouring Egypt. The cease-fire deal calls for more aid to be allowed in. The war has already claimed the lives of more than 14,000 Palestinians so far, even as about 1,200 Israelis were killed in the October 7 attack by Hamas terrorists who had captured around 240 hostages from southern Israeli towns. With at least half of them being foreign nationals or dual-citizenship holders from around 40 countries, Israel has been under international pressure to suspend its relentless bombardment of Gaza. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that the war against Hamas would resume once the truce expires. Such statements won’t help ease the situation. Tel Aviv would find it hard to achieve its goal of destroying Hamas’ military capabilities if the lull leads to a louder clamour, both on the international and domestic fronts, to end the war. The temporary de-escalation of hostilities may give Hamas an opportunity to regroup after having suffered heavy losses.

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