Despite the efforts of US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, an enduring ceasefire in Gaza remains unachieved following his ninth international mediation mission. Blinken announced the Israeli acceptance of a revised US proposal aimed at bridging the gap with Hamas. However, Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, stressed that any commitments must take into consideration Israel’s security needs.
The divisions between Hamas and Israel have not been reduced despite the US’s amendments to their initial proposal. Hamas asserts that any temporary ceasefire or prisoner exchange involving an Israeli captive and Palestinian prisoners must result in a cessation of war and complete Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza. Although Israel could reignite hostilities after a temporary truce ends to eradicate Hamas, according to Netanyahu.
Hamas is hesitant to agree to the ceasefire proposal and is asking for a return to US President Joe Biden’s ceasefire plan established on May 31st. Hamas accepted this plan on July 2nd, a decision the US reported was also agreed upon by Israel.
Biden accused Hamas of reneging on the present ceasefire discussions. However, according to Hugh Lovatt of the European Council on Foreign Relations who spoke to Al-Jazeera, although the US has attempted to soften Israeli conditions somewhat, the latest proposal essentially serves as a bridge between the US and Israel, not Hamas.
On Tuesday, Netanyahu announced that there won’t be any withdrawal of Israeli forces from narrow sections of the Egypt-Gaza border, a contentious issue for Hamas. An undisclosed official from Blinken’s team blamed Netanyahu for making extremist statements serving no constructive purpose to reaching a ceasefire agreement.
Netanyahu also plans to retain Israeli soldiers in strategic passages and push for screening displaced Palestinians who desire to return to Northern Gaza from the south. He also calls for the power to veto the release of certain Palestinian prisoners, deport those responsible for Israeli deaths, and has turned down a US suggestion to allow the Palestinian Authority based in West Bank to manage the Egypt-Gaza crossing – the sole pre-war entry and exit point for Gazans and goods.
Since the Israeli occupation of Rafah, the southern city of Gaza, in May, Egypt has maintained a shut border. This action has caused dire urgency among Palestinians who require medical assistance as they are unable to leave, and it has also severely restricted humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The United Nations has calculated that the war has uprooted about 90 per cent of the 2.3 million Palestinian inhabitants of Gaza. Furthermore, figures from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification indicate 96 per cent are grappling with severe levels of food shortage. These circumstances have compelled Hamas to allege that both the United States and Israel are using sufficient food aid as leverage for the acceptance of a revised ceasefire proposal. “This constitutes a war atrocity and a crime against human rights”, asserted Hamas, arguing that the Israeli occupation and the US government are blatantly implementing a starvation strategy and denying food to Gaza’s civilians for political pressure.