GAZA peace plan is facing serious hurdle as Israel continues to resist its implementation. While Hamas has expressed readiness to move ahead with the roadmap agreed with mediators in Cairo, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to maintain his intransigent position on Israeli withdrawal.
Addressing his cabinet on Sunday, Netanyahu categorically rejected the 15-point Gaza peace document, saying that Israel would not accept it and that its military would not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas was completely disarmed. His insistence that disarmament must precede any Israeli withdrawal threatens to undermine the framework intended to end the devastating conflict. Hamas, meanwhile, has called upon the mediators and the United States, as guarantor of the agreement, to press Israel to adhere to the roadmap rather than obstructing the process for internal political and electoral considerations. The appeal deserves serious attention. The peace plan cannot succeed if Israel continues to impose conditions that effectively delay its implementation. The situation is equally disturbing in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli settler expansion and violence against Palestinians continue to worsen an already volatile situation. The human cost of the Gaza conflict has already been staggering. More than 1,250 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire, most of them civilians. Israel has also occupied and depopulated large parts of the enclave, leaving more than two million Palestinians confined to a narrow coastal area, many living in tents or damaged buildings. At this critical juncture, the United States must use its influence to ensure that the Gaza peace plan is implemented in letter and spirit. Palestinians have suffered immensely and cannot afford another cycle of broken commitments and renewed violence. A credible and sustained implementation of the plan is essential not only to bring relief to Gaza’s devastated population but also to restore hope for peace and stability in the region.
