We are all the better for this one: the last week or two of the school year. I am so thankful that so many of my peers are returning to school after summer break, and that they are reaping the benefits of a new start with their new teachers. I wish I could say I could share the same experience as the rest of my friends but that is not possible. I can’t. I don’t want to.
I am disappointed that the ceasefire between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and former Hamas terrorists was not implemented sooner. The truce is critical, as it ensures that hundreds of thousands of Israeli soldiers will be left in the Gaza Strip, and thus not able to kill civilians. It also gives Hamas another reason to think that there is a deal with Israel (and the IDF) to let them go.
I do not know what the ceasefire means for Israel but it sure sounds as if it is a good thing for Hamas. In the past, Hamas has claimed that the ceasefire brought about the end of the Israeli occupation of Gaza, but it is unclear at this point whether that is true or not. Regardless, the ceasefire seems to have given Hamas a reason to think that there is a deal with Israel and the IDF to let them go.
On the one hand, Hamas would like to see Israel give up the Gaza Strip in order to get to a final settlement in the conflict. If they were to hold onto the strip, it could be used as a staging area for a future attack on Israel from Gaza. As it is, though, Hamas does not want to lose Gaza. It is in its interest to not lose Gaza because it is in its interest to keep Gaza alive as a safe haven for terror attacks on Israel.
The reason they are in talks with Israel is because Hamas thinks a long-term ceasefire would keep Gaza from falling into the hands of the terrorist organization. As long as Hamas can get enough of a head start in the negotiations, it can use the truce to stage an attack on Israel’s civilian infrastructure, something it has been unable to do since the beginning of the conflict. Hamas also hopes to use the ceasefire to keep the terror organization running in the West Bank.
As one of our readers noted, the problem with the ceasefire isn’t the terrorist attacks on Israel, but the lack of a peace between the two sides. Hamas wants a ceasefire so it can stage an attack on Israel’s infrastructure, something it has been unable to do since the beginning of the conflict.
A ceasefire is supposed to prevent the two sides from escalating the conflict, but right now the ceasefire seems to be working in reverse. With the terrorist attacks increasing, and Hamas and Israels infrastructure increasing at the same time, the ceasefire has been a non-starter for the both of them. The only thing that works is a military solution.
A military solution seems to be a dead-end. In a war between the Israelis and Palestinians, there are two sides that will win: the Israelis and the Palestinians. In a war between the Israelis and the Palestinians, there are two sides that will lose: the Israelis and the Palestinians. That’s how it’s always been. In the best-case scenario, both sides have the option to declare a ceasefire and return to the negotiating table.
It seems to me that the only way to avoid war is to declare a ceasefire. But you can’t really get involved with someone’s government without the government’s permission anyway. So this whole idea is pointless.
You wouldn’t, in that case, be able to declare a ceasefire because that would make the war a war of attrition. Both sides would continue to lose and the war would go on and on and on.