Much-needed respite

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After 15 months of relentless conflict, Israel and Hamas have reached a tentative ceasefire and hostage release agreement, brokered by Qatar and the US. While this development signals a potential pause in the violence that has ravaged Gaza, it remains a fragile and uncertain step toward lasting peace.

As Israel has repeatedly defied international calls, including from the UN and the International Criminal Court, to cease such actions, there is a legitimate concern that the occupying state may not honour this ceasefire for long as it has ignored other international legal bodies in the past. A lasting resolution must confront the central issue of the illegal occupation of Palestinian land. For peace to be sustainable, the international community must demand the return of Palestinian territories and the cessation of Israeli settlement expansion. Any agreement that does not address the status of Palestinian land is unlikely to hold. The ceasefire, while crucial, will remain a mere temporary halt if it is not followed by concrete steps toward justice, self-determination, and an end to the occupation. Furthermore, the broader humanitarian needs must be met, not just through ceasefires, but through reparations for the extensive loss of life and the destruction wrought over the past 15 months. Rebuilding Gaza will require substantial international support, both to address the immediate devastation and to create the conditions for a sustainable peace. This includes lifting the blockade and restoring Palestinian sovereignty over their land and resources.

The current ceasefire is a small but critical step in halting the violence. However, the international community must recognise that without addressing the political realities of occupation and displacement, this will be just another brief lull in a decades-long conflict. The challenge lies in confronting the entrenched inequalities and injustices that fuel the cycle of violence.