Crescent International
There is heightened speculation in the media about an imminent truce deal between Hamas and Israel.
Israeli, American and Egyptian media outlets gave optimistic assessments on May 4 based on statements of various officials.
Hamas officials were also quoted as saying that the latest proposal came closest to meeting their demands although Ismail Haniyeh said on May 5 Benjamin Netanyahu was sabotaging the deal.
This was reinforced by Netanyahu’s statement after the Israeli cabinet meeting on Sunday (May 5).
He rejected Hamas’s key demand to end the war on Gaza in return for the release of Israeli prisoners.
Why Netanyahu is so terrified of ending the war will be discussed shortly but first, let us consider the dynamics at work in the talks underway in Cairo.
The fact that CIA director Nicholas Burns arrived in Cairo on May 3 and is believed to be involved in the Egyptian-Qatari mediation talks added to speculation that a deal was close at hand.
Media reports say that if it succeeds, the deal would be in three phases.
In the first phase, a limited number of Israeli prisoners, perhaps 20 to 30, would be released on “humanitarian” grounds in exchange for an unspecified number of Palestinian political prisoners, kidnapped by Israel.
Hamas currently holds some 130 Israeli prisoners that include civilians as well as military personnel including some high-ranking officers.
The Times of Israel (ToI) reported that the first phase, lasting about 40 days, would also see the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from parts of Gaza and the flow of food and medicine into Gaza.
While it falls short of Hamas’s demand for complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a permanent ceasefire, these will reportedly be part of further phases.
The Palestinian Al-Quds newspaper, citing unidentified sources, said American mediators had promised that Israel would completely withdraw from Gaza under the third and final phase.
This means the war would effectively end, according to the ToI.
In the second phase, there will be additional exchange of prisoners, as well as larger flow of much-needed food, medicines and water as well as building material.
Nearly 80% of Gaza’s infrastructure has been destroyed including all schools and universities.
Out of 36 hospitals in Gaza, 33 have been destroyed.
Israeli occupation forces have carried out gruesome massacres in these hospitals.
Hundreds of bodies have been recovered from hospital grounds.
The third and final phase will include exchange of bodies and the withdrawal of all remaining Israeli forces from Gaza.
This, according to American mediators, would be an effective end to war.
Can Hamas rely on Israeli and American promises is the big question.
They are compulsive liars and habitual violators of promises.
Hamas, however, is confident that it still holds significant cards in the form of Israeli prisoners who will not be released under the first phase.
Families of Israeli prisoners are exerting pressure on Netanyahu to bring them home by ending the war.
It has failed to achieve any of its objectives: elimination of Hamas and securing the release of prisoners by military means.
There are other pressures on Netanyahu.
In the snake-pit of Israeli politics, he is hostage to the neo-Nazis in his cabinet.
They are breathing down his neck and threatening to withdraw support if he does not carry out the invasion of Rafah or accepts a ceasefire.
There is the additional fear that the International Criminal Court (ICC) might issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his top generals for war crimes in Gaza.
The Israeli newspaper Maariv reported that Netanyahu is “frightened and unusually stressed” by the possibility of an imminent arrest warrant.
Nobody should shed tears if the zionist genocidal maniac is arrested and thrown in prison for the horrendous crimes he has perpetrated against innocent civilians.
He wants to continue the war because its end would mean the end of his political career and a long stint behind bars.
He faces a laundry list of charges for fraud and other misdemeanors.
He is also accused of failing to protect Israel when Hamas struck on October 7, his macho image notwithstanding.
The noose is tightening around his neck.
