Any ceasefire in Gaza is a beginning, not the end.
There is now a ceasefire in Gaza between Hamas and Israel. Peace activists everywhere will be happy to hear this, but we know it is just the beginning, not the end – because peace is a process, not an event.
Hostilities in the middle east regarding Palestine didn’t begin on October 7th, 2023, nor did it begin in 1948. Pinpointing or even estimating a date is a PhD thesis in-and-of-itself, and definitely beyond the scope of anything I write here. What is known though is that there are generations upon generations of trauma, violence, and hatred that are fuelling this conflict.
There are questions to be answered by the West regarding the genocide in Gaza, and the ongoing humanitarian crisis – it seems from reports that the West – particularly America – did in fact have the leverage needed to bring Israel to the table, Joe Biden and Anthony Blinken just seemingly was not willing to bring such leverage to bear. But every day they did that, hundreds died to Israeli violence, and hundreds starved due to lack of food – not bringing that leverage to bear was a political choice. Peace activists on the street constantly heard “we cannot control what goes on over there” or similar – and yet, it seems we could, and we have been.
Beyond the macro politics of the region and debates about solutions, is one undeniable fact: Gazans require an immediate and massive influx of aid to help deal with the humanitarian crisis – and they will require much more to rebuild Gaza – including all 23 out of 23 hospitals rendered non-operational by Israel, all of the 11 major higher educational facilities, and the 80% of civilian infrastructure destroyed by Israel. The level of destruction in an area that covers only 1.7% of Wales – smaller than RCT – is utterly devastating. Britain sold weapons to Israel and gave them political coverage to continue their destruction – America even more so. We are culpable, and we must be strong in our support to rebuild Gaza.
The West Bank, under control of the Palestinian Authority (not Hamas) has also seen ongoing violence over this period. Settler violence has run rampant, with Israeli settlers attempting to expand settlements long recognised to be violations of international law. The territorial integrity of the Palestinian pseudo-state has been deeply compromised – and must be corrected. Inextricably linked to this is the far-right politics we’ve seen emerge in Israel – with figures like Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir wielding their massive influence over politics to sink peace talks and expand settlements. To those of you who say I miss-use the label far-right in referring to these individuals; Ben-Gvir has been convicted of incitement to racism and support for a terrorist organisation, and Smotrich is an illegal settler himself and is on the record for saying reprehensible things. If these figures held the political positions they hold in any other county, they would be on sanction lists.
To touch on what I called the ‘macro-political’ issues earlier, let’s be clear; no one, whether they be Israeli or Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, or unaffiliated, should have their lives marred by violence. It is not up to me to dictate any resolution to the Israel-Palestine situation, and neither is it up to the West – any resolution that leads to peace must emerge from the people directly affected by this decades old conflict.
That is what this ceasefire must begin – and where our role comes in. This ceasefire must be a catalyst for the peace-process to begin anew in earnest. The Palestinian people must have a just outcome, and the Israeli population must feel safe – and one begets the other. If settlements continue, peace is pushed further down the road to never. If violence continues, peace is pushed further down the road to never. Reconciliation must begin, and we have a role in ensuring the equal playing field that enables this to take place.
We must be cautious, but we must be optimistic.
We will continue working towards a just outcome for all, and to ensure a road paved with the recognition of human rights is followed to a peaceful conclusion for all.