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A week after ceasefire, Hamas demands global action to force Israel’s hand
(AL-JAZEERA) Hamas has urged mediators and the international community to pressure Israel to open the Rafah crossing, connecting Gaza and Egypt, as stipulated by the ceasefire agreement.
The UN says it still faces roadblocks from Israel in delivering aid to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza, still desperate for the necessities of life one week into the ceasefire.
Palestinian Muslim worshippers attend Friday prayers amidst the rubble of the destroyed Albaani Mosque in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip [AFP]
Hamas has called on international mediators to push for the Gaza ceasefire deal to be fully implemented, as Israel continues to restrict deliveries of humanitarian aid to the enclave.
At least 1,001 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli settler and military attacks in the occupied West Bank since October 7, 2023, the UN says. One in five of those killed was a Palestinian child.
Trump’s Gaza plan ‘normalised’ Israeli genocide in Gaza
Diana Buttu, a Palestinian lawyer and political analyst, has likened Trump’s Gaza plan to holding “a knife to [the] throat” of Palestinians. “That’s what this agreement is entirely about,” Buttu said during the IMEU webinar.
She explained that this is because the agreement gives all of the guarantees to Israel, “a country that has never respected any international agreement” or UN resolution, and has been accused of committing genocide against Palestinians.
“But beyond that … [the deal] giving Israel the veto in terms of what gets into Gaza, and we’re already seeing that Israel has already decided what is going into Gaza and what is not going into Gaza,” said Buttu, who noted that Israel is blocking portable housing and construction materials from reaching the Strip.
She added that the agreement ultimately has “normalised genocide”.
‘We are still afraid’: Palestinians do not trust Trump, Netanyahu
Abeer Barakat, a lecturer in English at University College of Gaza, says Palestinians in the enclave are still living in dire conditions despite the ceasefire – with a search for supplies and most importantly, water, dominating their daily lives.
Speaking during a webinar organised by the US-based Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU), Barakat said many people are “still afraid” that they will be displaced again.
“People here do not trust Trump or Netanyahu, although people keep telling themselves that this time the ceasefire is different because we have many countries supporting it,” said Barakat, who recently returned to Gaza City with her family.
“I should have come back to Gaza [City] the moment I heard about the ceasefire, but like many Palestinians, we decided to wait until the first phase of the ceasefire is done,” she added.
“But we are still afraid. Like many other families, we have kept many of our belongings in the south, in safe places … We are afraid that Netanyahu will [take] any kind of pretext, or any kind of excuse, to break this ceasefire and Trump will endorse it.”
The Palestinian group, Hamas, has expressed “deep appreciation for the sincere efforts” made by Egypt, Qatar, and Turkiye over the past two years to reach an agreement to stop Israel’s war on Gaza.
“This effort included hosting meetings, working to bring viewpoints closer together, bridging the gap between positions, and their insistence on overcoming obstacles, which ultimately resulted in ending the insane war on Gaza,” a statement on Telegram said.
The group called on the mediating countries Egypt, Qatar and Turkiye to follow up on the implementation of the remaining provisions of the agreement.
Accordingly, Hamas called for the entry of aid into Gaza in the required quantities, the opening of the Rafah crossing in both directions, and the beginning of the reconstruction of the enclave.
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