Shortly after the end of Operation Guardian of the Walls in 2021, Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, held a press conference. "That was my message to U.S. President Biden: Commit the occupation to international law and international resolutions. If you require the occupation, there is the possibility of a long-term hudna for four years or five years or more," he told the broadcasters at the time.
Sinwar elaborated on his conditions: "If the world presses Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and East Jerusalem, dismantle the settlements in the West Bank, release the prisoners, lift the siege on Gaza, allow elections to be held in Jerusalem [for the Palestinian Authority] and establish our Palestinian state on part of our land, there will certainly be a long-term hudna, and stability will be achieved in the region."
Hamas leader in Gaza Sinwar makes his first public appearance
Sinwar explained at the time that Hamas was willing to align itself with the other Palestinian factions, but added an important note: This does not reflect the doctrine of Hamas, where they have already stressed that they are in favor of "the annihilation of Israel."
Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who died a year ago, was perhaps one of Hamas' most influential clerics. Alongside his anti-Semitism, he would explain that it is possible to reach a ceasefire with the "enemies of the Muslims" in order to realign and when there is no choice. Hereinafter: "Hudna".
Sinwar indeed preferred to maintain relative quiet since Guardian of the Walls, in order to improve his abilities. When the time came for him, he attacked. One can only imagine what would have happened had Israel acceded to his terms for a hudna. PA elections and withdrawal from Judea and Samaria would have given Hamas power in this area as well.
Palestinian youths rioting near the fence, Photo: AP
Kings won't help here
As usual, in Israel there were those who dismissed his speech in 2021 as a source of great spoils. Here, they said, he too was open to the two-state solution. If we only reach out, we will bring peace. The terrorist attack shattered the bubble.
But even now, after the atrocities in the western Negev, there are those who are swept up in illusions – starting with the Americans, who believe that a ceasefire or a "truce" will serve the sacred purpose of releasing the hostages (in the past Hamas exploited this for a kidnapping operation); To those who build towers in the air based on the PA's return to Gaza or the "queen" of Muhammad Dahlan or mass murderer Marwan Barghouti.
Mahmoud Abbas. Will he get Gaza too?, Photo: AP
Since the beginning of the war, Israel has focused on Hamas leaders. Indeed, everyone must be eliminated - from Haniyeh who travels in Turkey, to Sinwar who hides in a tunnel. But make no mistake: the focus on them, whether they are eliminated or eliminated, obscures the depth of the problem: polls conducted in Gaza before the war showed broad support for the murder of Israelis.
Like many, I was exposed to the 45 minutes in which the IDF exposes to the foreign media the horrors of the massacre – a pure evil that is beyond description: a father flees with his children to a shelter and protects them with his body; murderers who make sure to expose his new widow to his body; Dead babies, the body of a woman who was raped, a foreign worker who was beheaded. Joy fades through the streets of Gaza.
No wonder such a rotten society breeds a psychopathic "leader" like Sinwar. It is not only the head, but also the snake itself. A public that is mostly sick with the viruses of violence and anti-Semitism. Any solution in Gaza will have to take this into account. Kings won't help here. As in Nazi Germany, Gazans will have to be re-educated.
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