The world breathed a sigh of relief when Israel and Hamas reached a settlement to stop the war. The exchange of hostages between both sides is a positive move after two years of bitter conflict, and the event has the potential to pave the way for lasting peace.
It is true that Hamas started this war by killing hundreds of innocent Israeli citizens in a surprise raid and taking a large number of hostages. When this happened, Israel had no alternative but to retaliate. Israel’s retaliation, however, was brutal and fierce, resulting in the deaths of more than 70,000 innocent civilians living in Gaza and nearby regions, and causing injuries to many more. The attacks forced people to flee war zones and created a severe shortage of food, even leading to starvation conditions.
While the world was aghast at the brutality of Hamas for killing innocent Israeli citizens, it was equally horrified by Israel’s actions that resulted in the deaths of thousands of innocent people in Gaza.
In such a tit-for-tat situation lasting nearly two years, people in both Israel and the Gaza region longed for the conflict to end. The leadership of both Israel and Hamas, too, sought a face-saving formula to bring the war to a close.
When the time was ripe for a peace initiative, President Trump made efforts to facilitate dialogue, giving the impression that he was the architect of the peace move in the Gaza-Israel war. This is not to belittle Trump’s efforts for peace at this moment. However, the fact remains that the United States has not been entirely neutral during the two years of conflict and has, in fact, helped Israel in various ways to sustain the war — a well-known fact. While Netanyahu praised Trump lavishly, calling him the greatest friend of Israel and even suggesting that he should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, it is notable that Hamas has not expressed any similar appreciation toward President Trump.
In any case, the conflict has now ended, and citizens in both the Gaza region and Israel — as well as the rest of the world — hope that this will be a lasting peace.
Under these circumstances, Netanyahu’s “victory” speech in the Knesset does not seem to foster a climate conducive to future peace between the two sides, but rather appears to sow the seeds of renewed conflict. It is uncertain whether this was intentional or merely a slip of the tongue. He stated, in effect, that Israel has virtually destroyed Hamas, and his speech contained subtle but clear undertones of hostility toward Hamas. There was no hint of reconciliation in his remarks, even though Netanyahu claimed that Israel is committed to peace.
Certainly, this statement would provoke annoyance among Hamas and its supporters, and it seems likely that a climate of animosity will continue. The speech may lead Hamas to act like a wounded tiger in the future.
Peace can be meaningful only in an atmosphere of mutual goodwill and a sincere expression of regret from both sides for the suffering and loss of innocent lives.
Netanyahu’s speech has raised suspicions around the world that the conflict between Hamas and Israel is merely in a temporary pause — that the seeds of discord remain very much alive.
Netanyahu seems to have lost an opportunity to lay the foundation for future peace between Israel and the Palestinians by failing to deliver a positive message of love and harmony toward those against whom Israel has fought for the past two years.
Furthermore, President Trump stated in his Knesset speech that Israel has won all that it could “by force of arms.” “You have won. I mean, you have won,” he said. However, when the goal is to achieve peace, speaking in terms of winning or losing cannot be helpful. Such remarks from a peace facilitator are indeed strange.
