‘Hamas represents the collective Palestinian will’
Hamas’s move to suspend its swap of captives over Israeli ceasefire violations shows its unique position in the Arab world of consistently standing up for the people of Gaza, an analyst says.
“This is a political statement designed to pressure both the United States and the Israeli government and people. This is an example of the kind of resistance politically that Hamas puts up. No other Arab party – except maybe [the Houthis] in Yemen – is really doing this in a sustained manner,” said Rami Khouri from the American University in Beirut.
“This is the reason why Hamas is taken seriously, because it does stick to the point and maintains political pressure to achieve its goals,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Hamas represents now better than anybody – certainly better than the Palestinian Authority and the PLO – the collective Palestinian will, and that includes the will to co-exist with the state of Israel with its Jewish majority.”
‘Zionist zombie killing machine and rejuvenated American imperial madness’
Rami Khouri, a professor at the American University of Beirut, says Hamas remains the only force in the Middle East that continues to hold Israel to account over its decades-long abuse of the Palestinian people.
“What Hamas is saying is either we all live in freedom and dignity, or none of us live in freedom or dignity. This is a very hard position to take, but it’s a position that generates a tremendous amount of support and admiration from people all over the world,” Khouri told Al Jazeera.
“It’s better to solve this conflict peacefully through negotiations and allow the Israelis and Palestinians and Lebanese and others to have equal rights. But this is not happening. Hamas is not willing to forever roll over and be quiet in the face of both Israeli genocidal attacks and American renewed imperial penetration and domination of the Middle East.”
He said ordinary Americans, Israelis, and especially the Palestinians want to see the ceasefire run its course and the war on Gaza finally comes to a permanent end.
“But it’s not going to happen with the Zionist zombie killing machine and the rejuvenated American imperial madness,” Khouri said.
President Trump ‘front and centre’ in ceasefire breakdown
Trump said he is losing patience, as he put it, with the Gaza ceasefire deal.
This is an important point because he is now doubling down on the highly controversial and repudiated idea of resettling all the Palestinians in Gaza and clarifying – despite protestations from many in his administration – that he sees such a move as permanent.
We do understand as well that some of the Hamas negotiators have cited this particular position by the Trump administration as one of the reasons why the deal could break down.
They want to get clarity from the United States as to the extent to which it will continue to back the ceasefire deal, which it helped broker together with Qatar and other nations.
So the president is front and centre in all of this, once again making very clear his belief, his solution, is effectively forced resettlement of Palestinians in Gaza on a permanent basis, as he has now made abundantly clear.
