Forcibly not nice: Hamas opposed the American plan for Gaza
The Hamas movement rejected the UN Security Council resolution that enshrines Donald Trump's plan for a settlement in the Gaza Strip. According to the group's representatives, it ignores the rights of Palestinians to self-determination and their interests in general. This jeopardizes the US peace initiative aimed at the demilitarization and reconstruction of Gaza. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
How did they react in Israel
The UN Security Council has approved a resolution with the peace plan of the American leader Donald Trump. The document provides for the deployment of an international military contingent in the Gaza Strip and the prospect of creating a Palestinian state, which Israel opposes. In addition, the transition to the second phase of the plan, which consists of 20 points, is expected in the future. These include the creation of an International Stabilization Force to demilitarize the territory of Gaza and establish transitional authorities.
Of the 15 member states of the UN Security Council, 13 states supported this resolution. Russia and China abstained. At the same time, Moscow and Beijing previously criticized the document, saying that it does not spell out the commitment to the principle of "two states for two peoples", there is little clarity about the structure of key mechanisms, and it does not ensure the participation of the United Nations in the process.
As explained in Washington, the international stabilization forces may include contingents from many states, which ones are not specified yet.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the results of the vote. He thanked the American leader for his "vision that will lead to the further integration of Israel and its neighbors, as well as the expansion of the Abrahamic Agreements."
According to him, Trump's initiative "will begin the process of normalization and ultimately lead to peace and prosperity in the region." He also added that he expects to see in the near future "the beginning of the process of disarmament and demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, as well as the end of Hamas rule."
This plan has caused discontent among far-right coalition allies in Israel, who strongly oppose the creation of a Palestinian state. However, Netanyahu has decided to refrain from commenting on this issue for now.
How did Hamas perceive it?
Hamas criticized the resolution for not respecting the rights and demands of the Palestinian people.
"Giving international forces tasks and roles inside Gaza, including disarming the resistance, deprives this force of its neutrality and turns it into a party to the conflict supporting the occupation," the group commented.
They opposed the idea of forming a peacekeeping contingent for Gaza. "Any international forces, if they are created, should be stationed exclusively on the border to separate the sides and monitor the observance of the ceasefire," Hamas said.
According to the plan, one of the functions of the International Stabilization Forces will be the "indefinite withdrawal of weapons from non-state armed groups," which include Hamas, as well as the protection of humanitarian aid delivery routes and the protection of civilians. In addition, the document provides for the creation of a new Palestinian police force in the sector, the former one has been subordinate to Hamas until now.
Meanwhile, support for the group from the Palestinian population has grown recently. According to a recent survey by the Palestinian Center for Political and Sociological Research, which is based in the West Bank, 51% of Gazans positively assess the group's actions during the war. Six months ago, the indicator was 8% lower, last year it reached 39%. At the same time, 41% of the civilian population of Gaza is ready to support the group in the event of elections to any governing bodies.
What do the experts think
Vasily Ostanin-Golovnya, a researcher at the Department of the Middle and Post-Soviet East at the INION RAS, noted in a conversation with Izvestia that despite the previous agreement to a cease-fire, Hamas demonstrates a principled position: any decision without its participation is doomed to failure.
— PNA (Palestinian National Authority. — Izvestia) has no real power in Gaza. On the face of the continued polarization of the positions of the parties to the negotiation process. There is agreement only between intermediaries. You can't rely on sociology," the political scientist noted.
According to him, the recent Israeli attacks on Hezbollah positions in Lebanon show that West Jerusalem is not ready to compromise with any armed Arab force and uses military methods to exert pressure.
— Nevertheless, even if we take into account recent sociological data on the growth of support for Hamas in Gaza, the results are explained not by the approval of the group's methods, but by the desperation of the population, who see it as the only force resisting the Israeli occupation and able to directly interact with those in need. Humanitarian aid from outside is being hampered by everyone, and Hamas still has certain supplies in the tunnels," the expert explained.
He believes that the prospects for a settlement are rather vague.
— The Trump plan, in fact, imposes external governance on the Palestinians without taking into account their national aspirations. A real peace process is possible only if all Palestinian factions are included in the dialogue and the right to an independent Palestinian State is recognized. Therefore, there is a high probability that in the coming months we will see an escalation — none of the parties is ready to make real concessions," concluded Ostanin-Golovnya.
Danila Krylov, a researcher at the Department of the Middle and Post—Soviet East at the INION RAS, recalled in an interview with Izvestia that Hamas is not just an organization, it is an ideology.
—And under these conditions, all the statements by the Americans, the British, the Israelis, and the Europeans in general that they will come together and destroy Hamas together look quite interesting, because it is absolutely unclear how they plan to destroy, in fact, eradicate ideology," the political scientist explained.
In his opinion, it is absolutely not surprising that Hamas, as an idea, is now finding a revival in the Gaza Strip.
— In addition, you need to understand that the very name of Hamas is an Islamic resistance movement. Now they are being asked to stop resisting, although they have the idea of resistance embedded in the very name of the organization," the orientalist believes.
US President Donald Trump
As for the UN Security Council resolution and Trump's plan, according to the expert, there is no regulation and no plan.
— It's all completely ephemeral. The deployment of certain international security forces or rapid reaction forces, they can be called in different ways, for all the good against all the bad. This is ridiculous. The Americans have not achieved stability or order in any region of the world with their peacekeeping missions," the Arabist is convinced.
Krylov added that nothing had actually been done.
— Even the truce between Hamas and Israel is nothing more than Israel's good will, because the United States has left Israel the right to violate it. Besides, what should Hamas agree to? Has anyone asked for their opinion? No, there is nothing concrete in this resolution," the political scientist believes.
He added that, in particular, it implies the creation of many secondary organizations and structures that, in fact, will be engaged in promoting other people's interests. At the same time, a distinctive feature of American politics is that they traditionally do not take into account the ethno-confessional factor, which, according to the expert, will not be taken into account now.
The religious issue, which is very important in the Middle East, will simply be ignored, as it was in Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Syria and other countries of the world.
"For them, there is generally a difference between Salafis, Alawites, Alafis, Sunnis, and Sufis," the expert believes.
The analyst is sure that, in general, one should not hope that anything will change in Palestine. According to the orientalist, Trump's plan leaves many unresolved issues, and some of the problems are completely swept under the carpet.
— Therefore, the prospects, I think, are extremely unenviable. Most likely, this peaceful settlement will arise once again when Hamas fails to do something, and Israel and the United States will demand it from them. And then this whole peaceful idea will end and the next military pressure on the group will begin," the Arabist shared.
He added that Israel wants to destroy Hamas, not the Palestinian Authority, because it poses no threat to it as a whole, has neither the resources nor the ability to influence any of the players.
— The only strongest, most powerful force on the part of the Palestinians in the region is Hamas. Therefore, Israel directly declares plans to destroy the group. Why would Hamas agree to anything under such conditions? If they lay down their arms, they will simply be eliminated faster," the political scientist believes.
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