With news that a ceasefire and hostage release deal is now closer than ever, what is really going on? Is just another round of fake news?
While past rumors about hostages being released ended up being nothing, Trump’s now famous “there will be hell to pay” if the hostages are not released by the time he becomes president have been seen as a game changer. For months we have seen pressure placed far more on Israel than Hamas. Trump’s comments appear to have changed course and placed pressure on Hamas, Qatar, and Turkey. However, no real evidence behind the scenes shows anything has changed except for the rhetoric.
Retired general Uzi Dayan weighed in on the unfolding deal between Israel and Hamas: “The main pressure is on us because he wants us to agree to a lot in exchange for no one. This is something we can check if it is going to happen, but we must be careful not to get ourselves into a situation, where we are giving everything, a military ceasefire and leaving Gaza, and in the end, do not receive everyone.”
“The pressure is mainly on us because the fact is that Trump’s emissary has come here and says he wants to see a ceasefire reached by the time the president enters the White House. He has not put any pressure on Hamas. They have certain levers to pressure the enemy mediator, Qatar, and I have not seen them exert any pressure even when they can.”
If this is true, then Trump is dangerously repeating the same mistakes the Biden team did. Hamas has no interest in making a deal that does not get Israel to retreat out of Gaza. While the deal that is rumored to be close does not achieve this in the first round, the idea that Hamas can get away with forcing Israel into signing that sort of deal with Trump onboard is mind boggling.
President Trump has an opportunity to break Jihadist terror once and for all, but in order to do that he must let Israel win a complete victory over its enemies. Showing any sort of weakness will encourage Jihadism to continue to grow paving the way for endless wars and destruction.
Meanwhile, a joint letter between the HaTikvah Forum, which represents many hostage families and 10 MKs from the coalition urged the Prime Minister to reject the deal:
“Do not cross the most, most basic ethical lines. Do not endanger Israel’s security,” the MKs and forum members wrote. “No one can replace the IDF soldiers at the Rafah Crossing and along the Netzarim Corridor. Do not agree to a deal in which we will lose assets without receiving all of the hostages.”
President Trump is used to making deals with people that are rational, but Hamas is a death cult who are willing to sacrifice the whole of Gaza. The only deal that can be made with Hamas is burying them in their tunnel and allowing Israel to reassert itself indefinitely over the territory.