In light of the ambiguity of the situation and the escalation of the war between the two sides, Hamas confirms that the Palestinian factions agree that there is no talk about prisoner exchange deals except after a comprehensive cessation of the war.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in turn, responds that Israel will not stop the war until all of its goals are completed, including the release of detainees and the elimination of Hamas.
Amid what appears to be a dead end, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, who is in the region, is seeking to find ways to make the truce more sustainable in Gaza, as he put it.
What truce is possible in light of the recent positions?
In the face of the great divergence in the Palestinian positions of Hamas and Israel, former Palestinian Minister Ashraf Al-Ajrami said in an interview with:newsroomOn Sky News Arabia, there are still opportunities for efforts to establish a new truce.
He adds:
- Hamas refuses to give up its prisoners and detainees, because they constitute a life-saving card for it.
- Hamas demands a comprehensive ceasefire and an end to the war until the detainees are released and Israel is prevented from returning to war again after receiving the detainees.
- The possibility of reaching a transitional compromise on handing over part of the prisoners and detainees to ensure the fulfillment of its demands on its part.
- The possibility of reaching a partial agreement for a truce for two weeks or a longer period in exchange for the release of a portion of the Palestinian prisoners and detainees held by the Israelis in the Gaza Strip.
- The difficulty of reaching a comprehensive ceasefire without reaching a political settlement from Hamas’ point of view, which Israel rejects.
- It is necessary to point out the arrests carried out by Israel against children as young as 13 years old and their trial for very long periods in violation of any humanitarian law.
- There are women in Israeli prisons who gave birth to their children while they were detained, and their children remained prisoners with them for long periods.
- The Israeli occupation must be condemned in all of this conflict, because it is the main cause of this high level of violence and blood flow and everything related to the current situation.
- The Israeli occupation continues to invade the West Bank, invading Ramallah, which is classified as Area “A” under the control of the Palestinian Authority, in addition to invading Jenin, Tulkarm, Nablus, and Hebron, killing, demolishing homes, and arresting people around the clock.
- The Israeli army is responsible for this destruction and the crimes that are occurring, which have continued for more than 56 years of occupation and more than 75 years of the Nakba.
- The Palestinian people are resisting for their right to life.
- Israeli public opinion began to put great pressure on Netanyahu to reach a deal, and many people were willing to make an all-for-all deal.
- Netanyahu is looking to continue the war until victory, to ensure protection that helps him survive politically.
- The results of the poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Christian Research indicate that 78 percent of supporters oppose attacks on civilians, while 76 percent of them agree not to harm civilians. Thus, it is clear that the Palestinian people reject attacks on civilians, whether they are Palestinians or Israelis.
Israel…and the fighting continues
For his part, Member of the Knesset from the Likud Party, Boaz Bismuth, says about Hamas’ position rejecting any truce without a comprehensive ceasefire:
- We are in a state of war against evil, and the Hamas movement is working to deny what Islam calls for.
- No Israelis have been as brutal as Hamas members since October 7th.
- Israel has lost skilled soldiers due to the war it is waging in the region with the aim of achieving stability and security there.
- Israel calls on all its groups and factions to continue fighting until the two main goals of the war are achieved, which are the return of the kidnapped people, including women and infants, and the elimination of Hamas.
- Hamas will be eliminated sooner or later.
- The war must be judged after its end and not from its beginning. The war is still ongoing between Israel and Hamas and has not ended yet.
- The necessity of calling on Hamas to release the hostages.
A difficult and complex exchange transaction
On the other hand, the former Deputy Director of Egyptian Military Intelligence, Major General Ahmed Ibrahim, said in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”:
- The hostage exchange deal, in light of the current conditions of incompatibility between the two parties, is very difficult and complex.
- Al-Qassam’s announcement of the killing of 3 Israeli hostages as a result of the Israeli bombing in central Gaza is a form of pressure on Israeli society and on the Israeli Prime Minister to submit.
- Israel is ready to sacrifice prisoners in the hands of Hamas to achieve goals of which it has been unable to achieve any part.
- Israel is forced to cease fire and reach a truce to release the hostages.
- The arrival of the Israeli forces required 75 days of bombing and killing to reach Khan Yunis without achieving any of their goals.
- Possibility of reaching positive solutions if the elements of political will are present on both sides at the negotiating table.
- The possibility of reaching a compromise solution stipulating the release of women and the elderly from the Israeli side in exchange for a portion of the prisoners in Israel to reach the release of the remaining detainees.
- Gaza has become an open prison housing 2.2 million citizens.
- The process of exchanging prisoners for both sides requires a truce, a process of reconciliation, and reaching a comprehensive ceasefire.
- Hamas’s agreement to join the Palestine Liberation Organization is a positive step in favor of the Palestinian cause and in favor of the administration of Gaza after the end of the war.
- The Palestinian citizen is the only one who is able, through the ballot box, to determine who represents him and who administers the Gaza Strip or the West Bank, and the two cannot be separated.
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2023-12-22 10:55:18
