By Brett Daniel Shehadey
Special Contributor for In Homeland Security
Monday afternoon, the Egyptian government proposes the idea of a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Today, at 6 a.m., Tuesday, Egypt presents a simple peace plan to Israel; each side must end full hostilities within 12 hours; Egypt to host delegations in a 48 hour time-frame.
At 9 a.m. Israel publically announces its acceptance to the Egyptian proposal after a Cabinet meeting.
At 11 a.m. Hamas fires some 35 rockets into Israel hours past the proposal deadline; kills one Israeli and provokes massive response.
At 3 p.m. Israel resumes fire into Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Hamas chose to continue fighting and will pay the price for that decision. When there is no cease-fire, our answer is fire.”
“We did not receive any official draft of this Egyptian proposal,” claims Sami Abu Zuhri, a senior Hamas official. Although he did say the plan was “not acceptable,” even without a formal offering from Egypt. Moreover, the militant wing of Hamas said that it “wasn’t worth the ink it was written on.”
Other anonymous voices out of Hamas say that negotiations for peace are still continuing although Hamas officials say they reject a “calm for calm” conditional requirement in any proposal.
Key Conditions Offered in the Egyptian Peace Proposal taken from New York Times:
HAMAS
Salaries: Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Western nations must allow the transfer of funds to pay employees of the Hamas-controlled government in Gaza.
Border crossings: Israel and Egypt must reopen the crossings and allow more goods and people to cross in and out.
Prisoners: Israel must release scores of Hamas members who have been detained in the West Bank in recent weeks.
Attacks: All Israeli airstrikes and other military actions against Gaza must stop.
ISRAEL
Attacks: All rocket fire and other attacks on Israel must cease, including any by militant groups other than Hamas.
The Israeli security cabinet accepted a cease-fire proposed by Egypt with no other preconditions.
EGYPT
Attacks: Both Israel and Hamas must agree to stop attacking and restore quiet in Gaza; Palestinian casualties must end.
The eight day Israel-Hamas conflict has so far left 200 Palestinians dead, one Israeli dead today; over 1,000 Palestinians wounded (mostly civilians); Israelis running to shelters amid rocket attacks; and hundreds of Palestinians fleeing northern Gaza to avoid airstrikes.
A previous conflict in 2012 ended on the eighth day where Egypt was successful in brokering a truce. The Gazans were celebrating in the street afterwards. Egypt maintains a key interest in quieting Gaza and limiting jihadist activities near and on the other side of its borders.
Unlike 2012, things are vastly different—they are worse. Hard feelings of punishment and retaliation are strongly felt on both sides that even Egypt alone is not enough. Also, things are very differently internally within Egypt, whose nationalist military leadership has ousted a more sympathetic Islamist President, Mohamad Morsi and arrested him. About 180 other Islamists have been tried and are sentenced to death at the outrage of Hamas.
Even though Egypt’s supreme leaders, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has been offering much needed medical support in Gaza, Hamas leadership feels isolated by its security cooperation with Israel and sealing the border from freedom of movement and arms, fighters and military supplies.
Hamas and a good number in Gaza increasingly see themselves as victims with no supporters; and while this may be the Palestinian story, they are isolated from the West Bank by choice and their evolving perspective is one of increasing lone desperation; specifically, that of Hamas. This desperation is likely to lead Hamas and enraged Gazans to do more rash and or unpredictable things against Israel. More specifically, their perceived struggle and the on-going conflict force them to take greater risks, to strike more symbolic and impactful targets within the heart of Israel- to do a new attack beyond rocket fire. This might include CBRN attempts via warheads, but they still have to weigh the risks of a counter-attack on Gaza that far exceeds the one they currently experience.
Importantly, Hamas and other groups in Palestine now need to prove themselves more than ever in the face of rising regional jihadist challengers who might take on the struggle against Israeli occupation and wrest power away from them. More than ever, they have a reason to continue fighting until they reach an appearance of jihadist relevance to the Muslim audience and redeemed worth to their political base in Gaza. These are major reasons they are rejecting peace and last night’s airstrikes by Israel. But because they foolishly took advantage of Israeli cease-fire, they will be considered terrorists in the language of the international community and not victims for at least another day.
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