The war between Israel and Hamas forces has been going on for fifteen months since October 7, 2023. An agreement to halt the war for a six-week period was signed and came into effect on January 19.
The war began when Hamas, a Palestinian militant group operating in the Gaza Strip, crossed into Israel and attacked. Hamas forces reportedly killed 1,200 people and took 250 hostages. Israel launched a massive offensive on Gaza.
Israel launched all kinds of attacks on Gaza. Reports indicate that 46,000 people have been killed so far, including Hamas members. 90 percent of the Palestinian population living there has fled their homes.
Several attempts have been made to end the fighting. A seven-day ceasefire was agreed in November 2023. During that time, 240 Palestinian prisoners were released from Israeli prisons. Hamas also released 105 Israeli hostages.
In this situation, an agreement was signed between Israel and Hamas during the peace talks held in Qatar. According to this, a six-week ceasefire has been declared. Following this, hostages from both sides are being released.
No policy decisions for a permanent ceasefire have been announced in the agreement. Despite this, there are reports that Israel has surrendered, Hamas has given in, and US President Trump is the reason for the ceasefire.
But there is no message in the temporary ceasefire agreement that both Israel and Hamas have come down from their political stand points. It is clear that Israel's position is that they will not stop attacks on Gaza until Hamas is dissolved. This is a position that is contrary to the ideas of peace. Hamas soldiers will not remain silent by trusting Israel.
Will Trump turn the temporary ceasefire into a permanent ceasefire? If he does that, the whole world will salute him. At the same time, global organisations, including the UN, should also actively pursue efforts to find a way to bring about a permanent ceasefire.
A permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is what we need. The world is waiting for it.