As we celebrate a Gaza ceasefire, we must not let our guard down

On the day the Nobel Peace Prize was announced, a ceasefire in Gaza has taken effect. By ceasefire, what is meant is that Israel will pause its bombardment of Palestinians, mostly civilians, since Hamas has long been incapable of firing anything back.

The lack of any real military logic has not stopped Israel from pursuing its all-out war on life in Gaza with the declared aim of rendering the territory uninhabitable and paving the way for reoccupation, resettlement, or complete devastation.

The timing of this agreement is no coincidence, on the second anniversary of the war and in a week full of Nobel Prize announcements. In truth, it may reflect less Israel’s exhaustion or that of its chief enabler, Donald Trump, and more the latter’s desperation for a foreign policy success having failed to deliver on his promise to end such conflicts “within 24 hours” of taking office. Trump has been so fixated on the Nobel Peace Prize, which was awarded to his predecessor, Barack Obama, that he reportedly pressured the government of Norway to sway the outcome, before it was awarded to someone else.

Still, even if cynicism proves justified, there is reason for cautious relief. If even one life in Gaza is spared, if the guns fall silent for only a few weeks, that alone warrants a measure of hope that this truce might pave the way to an actual end to the war. When news of the agreement emerged on Wednesday night, Gazans didn’t wait for the official ceasefire to begin celebrating nor did the families of Israeli captives still held by Hamas.

If and when the dust truly settles, that moment will bring a new phase of questions and reckoning. Long before the work of accountability, healing, and forgiveness can begin, Palestinians and their allies around the world cannot afford to let their guard down.

The Gaza deal is riddled with red flags and omissions. One example within its 20-point plan is the creation of a privatised “Peace Board” chaired by Donald Trump and Tony Blair, an embodiment of disaster capitalism, already proven catastrophic under the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Excluding the UN, UNRWA, the Arab League, and the Palestinian Authority from Gaza’s “day after” is a formula for continued misery and death.

The gravest flaw, however, lies in the absence of any clear commitment to Palestinian statehood, which while not a panacea, remains the essential foundation for any lasting peace in the region.

A vengeful and increasingly far-right Israel has consistently rejected self-determination for more than six million Palestinians under its rule, while simultaneously signalling plans to annex their land, expel as many as possible, and sustain perpetual conflict with its Arab neighbours.

If there is to be another path, it will not come from this incarnation of Israel. As economist Jeffrey Sachs recently noted, Donald Trump could recognise Palestinian statehood “in ten minutes.”

Indeed, the only reason Palestine’s application for full UN membership remains frozen is the American veto, the only holdout in the Security Council and the G7. If Trump truly seeks the “eternal peace” he claims to want, all he needs to do is lift that veto, and the world would change overnight.

The New Arab Editorial represents the collective voice of The New Arab’s editorial team, presenting views that promote authentic discourses on the MENA region and beyond. 

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