🔗 Share this article

The respite brought by the halt in hostilities in Gaza is immense. In Israel, the freeing of captives held alive has sparked extensive joy. Throughout Gaza and the West Bank, festivities are taking place as as many as 2,000 Palestinian prisoners begin their release – although concern lingers due to doubt about which prisoners are returning and their destinations. In northern Gaza, civilians can at last go back to dig through rubble for the remnants of an estimated 10,000 those who have disappeared.

Truce Development Despite Earlier Odds

Only three weeks ago, the probability of a ceasefire appeared remote. However it has taken effect, and on Monday Donald Trump travelled from Jerusalem, where he was applauded in the Knesset, to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. There, he attended a high-powered peace summit of more than 20 world leaders, featuring Sir Keir Starmer. The diplomatic roadmap begun there is scheduled to proceed at a assembly in the UK. The US president, working alongside international partners, successfully brokered this deal happen – contrary to, not because of, Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Palestinian Statehood Hopes Qualified by Past Precedents

Expectations that the deal marks the first step toward Palestinian statehood are comprehensible – but, given historical precedent, somewhat optimistic. It lacks a transparent trajectory to independence for Palestinians and risks dividing, for the immediate period, Gaza from the West Bank. Additionally the complete destruction this war has produced. The omission of any timeframe for Palestinian autonomy in the US initiative gives the lie to vainglorious mentions, in his Knesset speech, to the “epochal beginning” of a “era of prosperity”.

Donald Trump could not resist polarising and making personal the deal in his speech.

In a period of respite – with the hostage release, halt in fighting and renewal of aid – he decided to reinterpret it as a ethical drama in which he exclusively reclaimed Israel’s honor after supposed treachery by former US presidents Obama and Biden. This even as the Biden administration previously having attempted a analogous arrangement: a cessation of hostilities connected with humanitarian access and ultimate diplomatic discussions.

Genuine Autonomy Crucial for Legitimate Peace

A proposal that denies one side substantive control cannot produce legitimate peace. The halt in hostilities and humanitarian convoys are to be welcomed. But this is not currently political progress. Without processes guaranteeing Palestinian participation and authority over their own institutions, any deal threatens perpetuating subjugation under the discourse of peace.

Humanitarian Priorities and Rebuilding Obstacles

Gaza’s people crucially depend on relief assistance – and nutrition and medication must be the primary focus. But restoration should not be postponed. Among 60 million tonnes of rubble, Palestinians need help restoring homes, educational facilities, hospitals, places of worship and other establishments devastated by Israel’s incursion. For Gaza’s provisional leadership to prosper, financial support must arrive promptly and security gaps be filled.

Like a great deal of Mr Trump’s resolution initiative, references to an international stabilisation force and a proposed “peace council” are worryingly ambiguous.

Worldwide Endorsement and Prospective Outcomes

Robust worldwide endorsement for the Palestinian leadership, enabling it to take over from Hamas, is perhaps the most promising possibility. The enormous suffering of the recent period means the ethical argument for a resolution to the conflict is arguably more critical than ever. But although the halt in fighting, the return of the detainees and vow by Hamas to “remove weapons from” Gaza should be acknowledged as constructive moves, Mr Trump’s track record provides scant basis to have faith he will deliver – or feel bound to try. Immediate respite does not mean that the possibility of a Palestinian state has been brought closer.