The war in Gaza has brought a devastating and shattered picture of its civilian infrastructure, Israel, accused of killing 40 to 50 people daily, has reportedly killed nearly 45,000 people already. Israel’s one-sided game has been nothing less than a massacre, as evident in the judgments through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and Amnesty. Since the October 7 attacks, approximately 2.1 million Gazans have been made homeless and their territory has been violently transformed from the beautiful street filled with children into rubble scattered with dead bodies. The Palestinian Authority, responsible for the protection of its people, has ruthlessly failed to safeguard them and their infrastructure.
President Mahmud Abbas, often regarded as pathetic, an ineffective and an inefficient figure, has remained heavily reliant on Israel for revenues, essential services, and even personal travel arrangements. This dependency and complacency have enabled Israel to undermine Palestine and its people completely disregarding fundamental human rights standards throughout the conflict. After nearly 460 days of extreme hostilities, the world has finally witnessed some positive progress with the announcement of an Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal. However, it remains the topic of significant controversy.
The ceasefire is divided into three phases, each lasting 42 days. Phase one will involve limited prisoner exchange and the partial withdrawal of Israeli troops. The second and third phases will be planned. If the negotiations continue, determining that conditions have been met, then the second and Hamas will release all remaining captives, es, and in the third phase, there will be an exchange of dead bodies along with the reconstruction of Gaza.
Delving deep into the ceasefire provides an insight that Israel has achieved a one-sided victory in the conflict. Although Israel is to vacate Gaza the irony is that Israeli troops have already left Gaza after achieving their planned objectives. In this ceasefire, Hamas will release 33 Israeli prisoners while gaining a huge number of 1650 prisoners. Israel has not only gained an advantage in the prisoner exchange but has also maintained a disproportionate response such as killing 50 for every 5 lost Israelis. Arab countries, including Palestine itself, have been weaker in their strategies against Israel. At the same time, Israel has always maintained its hegemony through economic strength, defense system, and new military technology, especially when allied with the US.
Contrary to that, what Israel has achieved in this ceasefire is all its planned objectives. Israel has followed a strategy of generational control by annihilating 40-50 every day, which has completely made Palestine limp now. Israel had aimed to dismantle the complex network of both Hamas and Hezbollah by eliminating their top leaders including Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed by Israeli forces along with his bodyguard in the Iranian capital, Tehran. Yahya Sinwar, who was driven by deep antipathy toward Israeli occupation and genocide, was also killed.
In addition, Israel has successfully weakened “Hezbollah,” a Shiite Islamist political party and Shiite paramilitary group in Lebanon, including Hassan Nasrallah (Hezbollah’s top leader), who was killed on September 28, 2024. He was one of the most prominent Arab figures of his generation, with Iranian backing. Hezbollah served as a formidable and effective counterforce force against Israel in the region, consistently supported by Iranian authorities. The weakening of these counterforces allows Israel to emerge as greater Israel again and expand its hegemony for a long time in the future.
A ceasefire often involves two distinct and equally engaged parties in the conflict, but, in this case, Hamas has been completely wiped out. Hamas has gained very little for the Palestinian cause, while Israel has successfully achieved its objectives, employing both force and strategic maneuvers.
The duration of this ceasefire remains ambiguous and uncertain, especially given Israel’s consistent attacks on Gaza, which have persistently breached the principles of the ceasefires in the past. The breaking of this fragile truce will likely set a precedent future for future violations further, determining when and how Israel might attack and violate the ceasefire mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the US.
Despite numerous attempts at a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, the agreements have been marred by violations, often committed by Israel, which have undermined the prospects of long-lasting peace in the region. For instance, the ceasefire “Operation Pillar of Defense” reached in November 2012, mediated by Egypt under then-President Muhamed Morsi. The ceasefire ended the three-week-long conflict. But within weeks, Israeli forces conducted airstrikes on Gaza allegedly retaliatory measures for sporadic rocket fire. As a result, a Palestinian farmer was killed near the border of Gaza, drawing condemnation for violating the truce.
This ceasefire has an uncertain future and it has allowed Israel to maintain stronger influence in the region after completely defeating both Hamas and Hezbollah. Apartheid in Gaza continues which has now strong bases originating from Israeli soil, making it viable for Western maneuvering. It is now very difficult for Hamas and Hezbollah to re-form Iran’s axis of resistance against Western powers that prevailed for a long time. And it has come to an end now after Iran’s absolute isolation by the U.S. and its allies, which helped them to weaken the complex networks of Hamas and Hezbollah. These both will no longer be able to rebuild their same effective and energetic influence over the region.
