After two years of violence in the Gaza Strip, Israel and Hamas have agreed upon a ceasefire deal that could finally bring an end to the war. The deal stems from a 20-point peace plan put forward by U.S. President Donald Trump. The agreement includes a cessation of hostilities between Hamas and the I.D.F., the return of all hostages to Israel by Hamas within a 72-hour window, and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from a large portion of the Gaza Strip. Long-awaited and much-needed aid is expected to flood into Gaza, the B.B.C. reports, anticipating around 600 aid trucks every day. This deal does not guarantee that peace will be permanent. Negotiations between Hamas and Israel are still ongoing and could fall apart without continued cooperation, but for the first time in two years, the future of the people of Palestine is beginning to look more hopeful.
The international community is showcasing this newfound hopeful attitude. In a U.N. Security Council statement made by the council’s E3, the U.K., Germany, and France, officials stated that they “welcome the agreement on a ceasefire in the Middle East” and “pay tribute to President Trump’s leadership on the issue, [and the] efforts of the mediators”. Echoing this sentiment, Trump thanked the mediators for helping to achieve “this Historic and Unprecedented Event”. The mediators also seem hopeful that this agreement could bring about a lasting peace. Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi stated that the agreement “opens the door of hope … for a future defined by justice and stability,” and Qatar released a statement saying that the agreement “offers hope for lasting calm in Gaza”. In addition, Qatar also praised the ceasefire deal as a case study in the effectiveness of reason-based joint mediation as opposed to violent escalation. According to the B.B.C., James Elder, a U.N.I.C.E.F. spokesperson on the ground in Gaza, stated that for the first time in a long time, he was witnessing “an immense amount of relief” among the Gazan people. However, at the same time, he still saw “emaciated children” and continued, “Today is a very, very, important beginning.” This statement best encapsulates the current situation: hopeful yet still dire. This deal, although an undeniable step in the right direction, is not synonymous with the end of Palestine’s suffering. The end of the war is only the beginning of the long path to the alleviation of Palestine’s suffering.
In this scenario, the asymmetric nature of this conflict greatly complicated the mediation process. A 2010 study by Karin Aggestam, a professor and the Scientific Coordinator of the Strategic Research Area on the Middle East at Lund University, examined several types of mediation in the Israel-Palestine conflict and found that negotiated settlements are more challenging to achieve in asymmetric conflicts than symmetrical ones. This difficulty is because the power asymmetry of these conflicts leads the stronger party to act unilaterally; the “rules of the game of de-escalation and negotiation” are unclear due to the legal asymmetry of negotiations between state and non-state actors; and asymmetric conflicts are often identity-based, where both sides see compromise with one another as an existential threat to these identities. Legal asymmetry, power asymmetry, and identity differences form the basis of the relationship between Hamas and Israel, contributing to the complexity of mediation efforts in the recent agreement. Nonetheless, mediators were able to convince both parties to come to the table and compromise. The efforts of Egypt, Turkiye, Qatar, the United States, and all other nations involved directly or indirectly in the mediation process have demonstrated that even in conflicts where asymmetry complicates mediation and negotiation, there is always a path to peace.
There have been several other attempts to negotiate an end to the violence since the war started on 7 October 2023. Only six weeks after the war broke out, Hamas and Israel agreed to a truce, and according to Al Jazeera, a prisoner exchange took place, with Israel releasing 240 Palestinian prisoners and Hamas releasing 110 prisoners taken captive during the attacks on 7 October. The truce was only temporary, and fighting resumed after seven days. On 6 May 2024, Hamas leaders accepted a proposal from Qatari, Egyptian, and American mediators. The proposal, including another prisoner exchange and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, was rejected by Israel, and was subsequently followed by Israel’s invasion of Rafah. In January of this year, the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar brokered another ceasefire and prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas. According to NPR, Israeli troops violated the ceasefire and, several days later, Prime Minister Netanyahu unilaterally ended the agreement.
While the most recent ceasefire offers much hope for future peaceful coexistence between Israel and a Palestinian state, the many examples of failed ceasefire agreements thus far are evidence that a truce does not guarantee this future. This ceasefire agreement is very delicate, and the conflict could easily reignite if one side feels the other isn’t making sufficient concessions. International cooperation is necessary to ensure both parties adhere to the concessions and compromises made in the deal to uphold this ceasefire. Peace in the region is closer at hand than it has been in the past two years. Still, much work is required to secure this future.