Hamas calls for international pressure on Israel over ceasefire
The Palestinian group once again confirms its “full commitment” to the ceasefire with Israel.
It said in a statement: “With the end of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement and prisoner exchange, the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) confirms its full commitment to implementing all the clauses of the agreement in all its stages and details.”
“And we call on the international community to put pressure on the Zionist occupation to fully commit to its role in the agreement, and to immediately enter the second phase of it without any delay or hesitation,” the statement added.
The first phase of the truce ends on Saturday as the two sides’ representatives and mediators gather in Egypt for talks over the second phase.
Israeli minister says ‘only solution to Gaza is a full transfer’ of population
Speaking at a rally calling for the Jewish resettlement of Gaza in Jerusalem on Thursday night, Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s former national security minister, said “we have not learned from October 7”.
“Today, everyone knows I was right regarding encouraging emigration [to Gaza]. When I said it, I was called ‘messianic’. Today, the president of the world’s most powerful country says it,” he said, referring to President Trump.
Ben-Gvir resigned from Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government in January to protest the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli captives as part of phase one of the Gaza ceasefire.
Far-right Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman also spoke at Thursday’s rally, saying Netanyahu and Trump are “promoting a historic migration out of Gaza”.
“Praise God we have a government that is committed to that. The only solution to Gaza is a full transfer. We will return to Gush Katif,” she said, referring to Gaza’s Jewish settlements that were evacuated in 2005.
‘Another round of fighting’ likely in Gaza
Mohamad Elmasry, a political analyst at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, says that in the early days of the ceasefire, there was “some hope” that the Trump administration would pressure Israel to get to phase two of the deal.
However, as time passed, Elmasry said it became clear the US administration “is more or less giving Israel a free hand” and Trump is looking to “wash his hands” of the issue.
This means “we are likely headed for another round of fighting,” he said.
“Israel, for its part, has been pretty consistent … if you look at what they’ve been saying and also what they’ve been doing. They’re pretty clear that they intend to go to more war, not to phase two,” Elmasry stated.
He said his analysis of Israel’s strategy is to enter negotiations for phase two with the objective of “simply extending phase one”. “Everything that Israel is saying and doing suggests that they are not interested in going to phase two [of the ceasefire],” he told Al Jazeera in Doha.
Elmasry stressed that Israel seeks a continuation of the war despite the fact that it has been “very politically costly” for the country, especially for its global standing, which has taken “a major hit”.
“I believe since October 2023, they have set their eyes on depopulating the Gaza Strip,” the academic added. “It has been mostly an unstated goal up until recently, but I do think that remains kind of their prize.”
Elmasry concluded that Israel believes it can achieve this goal with the help of the new administration in the US.
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