Gaza 'ceasefire' an ultimatum, not an agreement

THE ‘CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT’ misreported by many mainstream media yesterday was not a negotiated agreement with Hamas and other Palestinian militant factions. Instead, it was an unconditional ceasefire presented by Egypt and Israel to Palestinians on a ‘take it or leave it’ basis, the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign says.

Palestinians only heard about the ceasefire through the media, according to several Hamas spokespeople and Palestinian commentators. Furthermore, the terms of the agreement did not include an end to the seven-year-long illegal siege of Gaza, which is a fundamental issue, nor address other concerns which Hamas and other groups have openly stated must be part of any such agreement.

Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign media spokesperson Freda Hughes says:

 “As the death toll today for Palestinians today surpasses 200, and the conflict has witnessed its first Israeli death, an end to the Israeli assault and efforts toward a genuine, just ceasefire are of paramount importance.

 “Any such ceasefire will include all actors and have at its core an end to the illegal and inhuman siege of Gaza and the cessation of Israel's attempts to destabilise the fragile Palestinian unity government. The international community must pressure the Israeli Government to make this happen.”

Q & A with Professor Rashid Khalidi and Assistant Professor Noura Erakat of the US-based Institute for Middle East Understanding

Q – Why do you think Hamas didn't accept the terms of the ceasefire?

Professor Rashid Khalidi

Hamas has insisted that there be a lasting resolution of the basic problem of Israel's siege of Gaza, as was promised as part of the 2012 ceasefire but never implemented in spite of Israel’s recognition that Hamas scrupulously maintained the ceasefire until quite recently. The Egyptian proposal makes lifting of the siege conditional on Israel’s approval, which means never.

Assistant Professor Noura Erakat

Within two days of Israel’s aerial assault on the population of the Gaza Strip, Hamas announced five conditions for a ceasefire:

1) Stop the airstrikes;

2) Observe terms of 2012 ceasefire;

3) Release the Palestinians released during the Shalit prisoner exchange who were recently rearrested;

4) Lift the siege; and

5) Don’t interfere with Palestinian unity government.

What little is known about the proposed ceasefire agreement is that it demands a cessation of violence with no conditions, thus reverting to conditions that are even worse than the status quo ante.

This clearly weakens Hamas politically, exacerbates the humanitarian conditions under which Palestinians struggle, and emboldens Israel to strike again with zero accountability.

That said, it is not in the Palestinians’ best interest for Hamas to continue launching rockets, regardless of the circumstances, as it provides a justification for Israel to continue its brutal attacks on a defenseless and besieged population.

Q – What will be required for a ceasefire to be accepted by both sides?

Rashid Khalidi

Either serious external pressure on the parties, especially Israel, or the exhaustion of both sides, which is not yet apparent.

Noura Erakat

Hamas has made its five demands clear and its observance of the November 2012 ceasefire demonstrates its good faith.

In contrast, it is not clear what Israel’s endgame is. It seems willing to accept a ceasefire on condition of Hamas’s unconditional capitulation but what will ensure that it does not indiscriminately attack the 1.8million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip again?

Israel has said it is bombarding Gaza in retribution for the death of three Israeli teens though it has failed to produce a single shred of evidence incriminating the Hamas leadership.

Israel also claims it wants to decimate Hamas’s capability to launch rocket and mortar fire but this makes little logical sense since, in the past, diplomatic efforts have done much more to yield a cessation in rocket attacks than have military ones.

Q – What do you think Israel's actual goals for bombing Gaza are?

Rashid Khalidi

Israel's main goals are to weaken Hamas and to prevent an inter-Palestinian reconciliation, which would strengthen the Palestinians and make them more capable of resisting inexorable Israeli pressure.

Noura Erakat

Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu is attacking Gaza in response to domestic and international political considerations that have nothing to do with any threat posed by Hamas.

Right before the start of this latest assault on Gaza, Netanyahu suffered several blows politically: he failed to thwart the start of a US-Iran rapprochement; was unable to stop the establishment of a Palestinian unity government; and was widely blamed for the collapse of the peace talks renewed by US Secretary of State John Kerry last summer.

His political standing a well as that of Israel’s had been seriously weakened and by launching an attack on the Gaza Strip he appears strong to the Israeli public, shifts international attention away from Israel’s responsibility for the failure of negotiations, and puts enormous pressure on the recently-formed Palestinian Authority national unity government, which Israel wishes to undermine.