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Will Gaza truce bring peace, end Israeli aggression?

Published : Sunday, 19 January, 2025 at 12:00 AM  Count : 404
After more than 465 days of intense fighting between Israeli and Hamas forces in which close to 50, 000 Palestinians were killed, a new Gaza ceasefire agreement finally takes effect today (Sunday) with the hope that it will surely mean an end to the prolonged catastrophic war that led to genocide by Israeli forces.  

Although Israeli cabinet ratified the deal on Saturday, there is still doubt whether peace will return to the region as over 117 Palestinians, including 32 women and 30 children have died in Israeli air strikes even after the announcement of the ceasefire deal by the US President Joe Biden on January 15. Other brokers of the deal were Qatar and Egypt.

The Hamas-Israeli war erupted after the former launched unprecedented cross-border military strikes on Israeli territories on 7 October, 2023. About 1,200 Israeli were killed and 251 taken hostage by the Hamas forces during its onslaught.  In retaliation, the Israeli forces killed at least 47, 000 Palestinians, of them 70% are women and children.  

Release of Israeli captives was the key focus of the ceasefire agreement. And in the first phase under the deal, over 30 Israeli hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza will be exchanged for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. 

Additionally, Israeli forces will also pull out from densely populated areas of Gaza that will facilitate displaced Palestinians to return to their homes.  Hundreds of aid lorries will be allowed into the Palestine territories each day. The second phase of the agreement will see the remaining hostages released and a full Israeli troop withdrawal and the restoration of peace in the region. 

The most important third and final phase is the reconstruction of Gaza which can take decades. This is because Israeli air strikes and ground operations have burned many Palestinian cities into ashes. As a result, major roads have been shut down and critical water and electricity infrastructure has been completely destroyed. Even educational institutions, religious structures and hospitals were not spared.

Though it will take many years to have an idea about the full extent of the damage, the United Nations estimated last month that 69% of the structures in Gaza were destroyed, including over 245,000 homes. On the other hand, the World Bank said that the damage in Gaza war could account for $18.5 billion.

Now the question arises who will control Gaza and take on responsibility of its reconstruction. Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas has said that the Palestinian Authority (PA) was ready to assume full responsibility in post-war Gaza in his first statement after the ceasefire deal. 

Similarly, the US and much of the global community put their weight behind PA to govern the West Bank and Gaza with the support of Arab countries ahead of eventual Palestinian statehood. But Israel that is opposed to a Palestinian state has not yet agreed to this idea.

We are left hoping that the new Hamas-Israeli truce will come into practice in real sense and a lasting peace will exist in Palestine and in the Middle East as well in the future.



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