Hamas’ peace overtures

There is no brave-man’s peace in the Middle East. The warring parties, especially in the case of the Gaza offensive, are shying behind excuses and exigencies. Israel is, as always, in defiance to norms and conventions of International Law, and perhaps believes in dictating terms. Not to question the haplessness of the Palestinians, who are pissed as a sandwich between the rank and file of disunity, and inaction from the Muslim world, per se. Whatsoever efforts were made to scale down the volatility and broker a ceasefire went in vain as none are sure where the buck stops! This pathetic situation has claimed more than 36,000 innocent lives, all of them non-combatants, since October 7 brinkmanship of Hamas to march deep inside Israel, resulting in its inhumane ire.

The militia now has put its foot down and wants Tel Aviv to suspend military operations in Gaza and Rafah as a precondition for meaningful talks. But the million-dollar question is whether the Zionist state is seriously interested in parleys or halting its mutilating offensive. A simple but qualified answer is a big ‘No’. Yet, Hamas has tried to put Israel in a tough diplomatic position by making the mediators, especially Qatar and Egypt, aware that it is willing to step back from the brink for the sake of genuine peace. What that entails in the long run is anybody’s guess, and it makes sense only if the allies of Israel, i.e. the United States and Europe come to put their weight behind Hamas. That, for a while, does not seem to be a possibility as the stakes are too high to climb down from the ladder of arrogance in realpolitik terms.

Hamas has been in a series of negotiating sessions with the so-called honest brokers, the Mideast states, in an endeavour to push the envelope of a quid pro quo with Israel. Timely breakthroughs in the form of releasing Israeli military captives in lieu for Palestinian prisoners were just window-dressing of sorts, and did not come to provide relief to the besieged and bombarded Gazans. That is so because it was a blanket failure on the part of the United Nations and its succour-providing agencies to stick to their mandate. The outcome is complete annihilation of around a million Palestinians in terms of their psycho-social right to exist. The ICJ dictums too have been thrown to the wind, and Israel contemplates to have the last laugh.

Hamas should choreograph a viable diplomatic muscle, if it is really interested in giving up the military option. That would be a tough task, provided there are few listeners. As an initial recourse, Hamas should join hands with the estranged Palestinian political entities to portray a bigger deal of solemnity.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 1^st, 2024.

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