Israel on Wednesday officially confirmed that an Egyptian-proposed ceasefire (tahadiyeh) with Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip will go into effect at 6 A.M. Thursday.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/993702.html
There is a lot of controversy in Israel concerning the topic of a ceasefire with Hamas. What people are afraid of, in a nutshell, is this -
1. The Hamas ultimately wants to destroy Israel and isn’t interested in any peaceful solution.
2. The Hamas is under pressure, making them want a very temporary ceasefire.
3. They will surely use the ceasefire to better arm themselves and prepare the next stage of the war against Israel.
4. We will be at war again, only on worse terms, in the future.
The logical conclusion being:
Why give them the benefit of a ceasefire, only to make them stronger and a worse enemy in the future?
I am willing to bet there’s a similar reasoning with some people on the other side. Thinking Israel only wants the ceasefire so it can weaken the Palestinians in Gaza somehow. For myself, I still think that not shooting is better than shooting, no matter how you look at it. Not sure why they’re waiting for Thursday at 6 AM either. I guess to make sure those engaged in the fighting get the message on time.
It does remain to be seen though, what the Palestinians will do. This ceasefire isn’t just about halting hostile activities -
Once there have been three days of calm, Israel has pledged to ease the economic siege of the Gaza Strip and allow a large shipment of raw materials and merchandise through the border crossings.
…
At the same time, Shin Bet security service head Yuval Diskin will evaluate whether the clause in the agreement to cut the smuggling of arms significantly has been kept. The smuggling goes via Sinai to the Strip. If Israel sees progress on these two fronts, it will remove its objection to the opening of the Rafa crossing.
I don’t think Palestinians would appreciate the tone of that last paragraph about Diskin, but really, what Israel is saying here, “Here’s your chance to finish the blockade and start a new page for Gaza. All you need to do is focus on bringing in the food, medicine and things required for peaceful life, and avoid importing weapons. The ball is in your court again - make the most of that.”
It’s another opportunity for the Palestinians to show, by actions and not by words, that they are heading towards a solution of peaceful co-existence. If I were a Palestinian, I would push towards that route, and opt towards developing Gaza and demanding more and more of the commerce and movement limitations to be removed, as they surely will be removed if the Palestinians focus on building Gaza towards peace, and not towards war.
on Jun 18th, 2008 at 11:06 am
Doesn’t seem a little strange how all these peace overtures seem to be sprouting out? Israell talking to Syria; Hamas Truce; Prisoner swap with Hezbollah…Good a final peace drive be just around the corner?
Jad Aouns last blog post..Something’s Cooking
on Jun 18th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
That’s ‘Could’ not ‘Good’……
I haven’t been watching the truce development closely but I don’t trust Hamas. I don’t know if this truce will hold. They are focused on their on power and it seems that they are just vying for breathing space.
Jad Aouns last blog post..Something’s Cooking
on Jun 22nd, 2008 at 5:37 am
Plus the fact that Ismail Haniyeh has come out publicly and said that weapons smuggling will continue despite the ceasefire, so while I agree that not shooting is certainly better than shooting, I’d also agree with Jad in saying that I don’t trust Hamas. It’s only a matter of time before one side or the other comes up with some excuse to break the truce, whether it be a “work accident” on the Palestinian side that Israel gets blamed for, or Israel executing a “targeted assassination” of a “ticking bomb”. For now, though, I’m just glad that residents of the south are getting a respite from the rockets and missiles.
Liza Rs last blog post..Definitely Something Something