The Ceasefire Happens
So, the ceasefire has been reached upon by both sides. How things will unfold over time, that’s to be decided in the coming days. But in Pakistan, Palestine was the issue where both right and left supported the same side and yet couldn’t agree or unite on it somehow. One side was more concerned about the other side not wearing dupatta and the other side’s approach was myopic considering the layered, convoluted nature of the Israel-Palestine issue.
Majority of the people failed to acknowledge the involvement of Hamas and how its acts also bring suffering on the Palestinians. The casualties on the other side didn’t make the common narrative. The local factors like power struggle between Hamas and PLO, Abbass’s decision to postpone the elections and Hamas’s need to establish its relevance were also absent. The narrative was largely built on propaganda and one-sided view. The woke culture of social media rendered many internet users, who didn’t have any knowledge of history or the issue, jumping to the bandwagon and feed the propaganda.
The role of international community, especially the US who is considered a de-facto arbitrator in such circumstances, remained more diplomatic than solution-oriented. President Biden’s call to Palestinian President and Israeli Prime Minister is clearly indicative of this approach. While he reiterated that the two-state solution is the only way forward and the US will play a role in its realization, he assured Netanyahu that the US supports Israel’s right to defense.
The issue with this approach is that the major actor in the play was not on the table at that time. If there were any backchannel negotiations, they have not surfaced yet. That actor is the militant organization Hamas that is gaining political relevance amid the Palestinians. It is becoming popular among the Palestinians and has the potential to claim seats alongside the PLO, the scenario equally unacceptable for Israel, the US, and also the current Palestinian regime.
However, the current regime in Palestine also required a distraction to deviate its people’s attention from the postponement of the elections. A perceived autocratic regime, combined with destitution, does not bode well for a state’s stability. There has to be an external enemy to unite the masses and garner their loyalty. While to this end, the goal has been accomplished, the current regime still needs to evaluate why people are drawn more towards a religiously inclined entity than toward a relatively secular one. One factor is the confusion within the PLO’s factions and no clarity in its agenda.
The one thing that has become clear over time but still remains missing from the majority narrative is Hamas’s role as a proxy and it being a nuisance for the Palestinian government as well. While the official calls were made to Abbas, it is Hamas and Islamic Jihad that were needed for the ceasefire. Another factor highlighted by this 11-day episode of violence and excessions is how evictions in a neighborhood can lead to missiles and instability. The gaping hole that rendered things out of control is the lack of leadership on the part of the Palestinian Authority that failed to connect with its people amid the rising tensions in Jerusalem.
While the Israeli casualties, both economic (although funded by the US) and human, would remain in the talks for a long time, it’s the Gazans and Palestinians that require the attention now. The major concern in the aftermath of this 11-day episode is rehabilitation. A region that is reeling with poverty and destitution would not be able to build the razed buildings on its own.
It takes years to build a city, especially a conflict-torn one, which means the emitting destruction has pushed the city decades back in terms of development and stability (considering the PA had resumed security cooperation with Israel earlier). As an outcome of this episode, Hamas has succeeded in becoming the face of resistance for Palestinians. That is going to add to its popularity and political clout even more — something Israeli airstrikes cannot neutralize. It will redirect the masses’ resentment towards its way of governance to the weakness or perceived complicity with Israel. While both sides are celebrating the ceasefire as their victory, it’s for history to declare the winners. But one thing is for sure, it’s the civilians that remained on the losing side throughout this episode.
