Middle East expert believes there is a high stake for the cease-fire proposal in Gaza – Dagsavisen

– Now a lot is happening at the same time. Hamas accepts a ceasefire, Israel appears to reject it. At the same time, 100,000 Palestinians are being deported from Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip, while an Israeli ground invasion may be approaching. There is a very high stakes for the gallery here, says Middle East expert Hilde Henriksen Waage to Dagsavisen.

– Perhaps we can now hope that this is the last push in this war. In any case, a temporary end, says the Middle East expert, who is professor of history at the University of Oslo (UiO) and senior researcher at the Institute for Peace Research (Prio).

– It is absolutely crucial that both Hamas and Israel do what they can to establish a ceasefire in Gaza, says Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Ap) to NTB.

Cheers in the streets

It was at 6pm on Monday that it became known that Hamas in a statement said it had accepted a proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, which has been negotiated with the help of Qatar and Egypt. But Israel says no. According to NTB, an Israeli official told the Reuters news agency that they do not accept the latest proposal. It reportedly contains “far-reaching conclusions” that are not acceptable to Israel. A Hamas source tells the AFP news agency that it is now up to Israel whether they will accept the proposal.

Meanwhile, cheers for the cease-fire had managed to break out in the streets of the city of Rafah. Over a million Palestinians have fled to Rafah after the war broke out on 7 October last year. On Monday, the Palestinians in the eastern part of Rafah were ordered by Israel to leave the city.

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– Forced evacuation

Despite the fact that at the moment there does not seem to be a ceasefire, Waage believes that we are also witnessing a high stakes game from both sides, in the midst of what could turn out to be fateful days in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

– Hamas therefore says that they accept a ceasefire, Israel says no to a proposal they themselves originally came up with. At the same time, Israel orders the forced evacuation of 100,000 Palestinians from Rafah, and in that way shows with all clarity that a ground invasion is underway. I believe that both Hamas and Israel are now trying to get as much done as possible in this war before a ceasefire comes into force, says the Middle East expert.

– We often see this: Just before negotiations on a ceasefire take place, we see an escalation of hostilities that flare up at the same time, Waage points out.

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Pressure from the US

The Middle East expert will nevertheless rule out the worst scenario: That Israel is serious about invading Rafah – and is actually doing it.

– In that case, it will happen against the whole world. What is absolutely clear is that both Hamas and Israel are under great pressure from the United States and a number of other countries to end this war and establish a ceasefire, she says.

– Israel has also been told by the US and soon the whole world not to enter Rafah. What is absolutely clear is that the United States and the Biden administration now seriously believe that they may have started to withhold weapons that were to be delivered to Israel, in order to put power behind the demands.

The case continues under the fact box.

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Facts about the proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip

Hamas has accepted a proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The content has not been finally confirmed, but according to Hamas, the agreement can be implemented in three phases.

Phase 1:

• 42-day ceasefire.
• Hamas releases 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for Israel releasing Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.
• Israel carries out a partial withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and allows free movement of Palestinians from southern to northern Gaza.

Phase 2:

• New period of 42-day ceasefire.
• The vast majority of Israeli soldiers are withdrawn from the Gaza Strip.
• Hamas releases Israeli reservists and some soldiers held hostage in exchange for Israel releasing more Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.

Phase 3:

• Exchange of dead hostages and Palestinian prisoners
• Implement the reconstruction plans overseen by Qatar, Egypt and the United States
• Ending the complete blockade of the Gaza Strip

Source: Reuters/NTB

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An Israeli military spokesman said later Monday, according to NTB, that the plan for a ground invasion of Rafah is ready, and that the order given earlier Monday to evacuate the city is a preparation for the ground invasion.

The same was said by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a meeting in the war cabinet on Monday evening.

He said Israel will continue the operation in Rafah “to pressure Hamas to release the hostages.”

A spokesperson for the White House in Washington, Matthew Miller, says according to NRK that the US will study the details of the proposal from Hamas carefully together with Egypt, Qatar and Israel in the next few hours.

On Monday evening, AFP reports new, intense Israeli airstrikes against Rafah.

– A whole world follows

Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide believes that a peaceful solution to the ceasefire drama could mean the difference between life and death for many people on both sides of the conflict.

– The whole world is watching and expects both parties to show a willingness to meet each other, says Eide to NTB, and continues:

– Such an agreement is the goal in the short term, to put an end to the enormous suffering in Gaza. I repeat the demand that the war must end, the hostages must be released and the people of Gaza must get the help they need. At the same time, we must continue to work for a two-state solution, which is the real solution to this.

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