TEHRAN – The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has exposed the regime’s vulnerability more than ever in the face of unprecedented Palestinian resistance.
The ceasefire agreement reached on Wednesday night will be implemented in three stages. The agreement paves the way for the release of the remaining prisoners held in Gaza and the return of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. It should also result in the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.
Immediately after Israel launched its war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, efforts to end the conflict began immediately.
However, Israel and its main Western ally, the United States, concocted various stories to nip any ceasefire efforts in the bud.
Benny Gantz: Netanyahu’s promise of ‘complete victory’ over Hamas is ’empty’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has consistently vowed to continue the war until Hamas is “destroyed” by achieving “absolute victory” over the resistance movement and returning all prisoners of war.
The United States also vetoed several UN Security Council resolutions aimed at establishing a ceasefire in Gaza.
President Joe Biden’s administration has committed even more military power to Israel. From October 2023 to October 2024, Washington spent a record $17.9 billion in military aid to Israel, according to a report by Brown University’s War Costs Project.
Yoav Gallant: Prime Minister Netanyahu’s ‘absolute victory’ slogan is ‘meaningless’
Earlier this month, U.S. officials said the State Department notified Congress of plans for an $8 billion arms sale to Israel.
In addition to the United States, European countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, and Farunse support Israel despite the crimes it has committed in Gaza.
Nevertheless, Israel’s military ambitions have suffered a setback more than 15 months after it waged a genocidal war in Gaza that claimed the lives of some 47,000 Palestinians.
Now, the ceasefire clearly shows that Netanyahu’s dream of victory over Hamas was just a pipe dream.
Avigdor Liberman: “Instead of complete victory, we suffered complete humiliation”
Israel’s National Security Institute acknowledged on Friday that the regime had agreed to the cease-fire out of desperation.
INSS said: “The meaning of the agreement is clear: Israel will not bring about the ‘collapse’ of Hamas, because it never could.”
The Israeli think tank added that Netanyahu had prolonged the Gaza war due to “personal survival and short-sighted thinking” and “more Israeli soldiers and prisoners of war lost their lives.”
The Israel Institute said the military is “exhausted by missions that have no impact on the outcome of the war, and Israel’s international standing is fundamentally undermined.”
“None of these actions will change the fundamental reality and will only amplify the impact of Hamas’s resurgence.”
Throughout the course of the Gaza war, Israeli officials acknowledged that it would be impossible for the regime to subdue Hamas.
Maj. Gen. Daniel Hagari: “The idea that it is possible to destroy Hamas and make it disappear is throwing sand in the eyes of the people.”
Former army minister Yoav Gallant, who was fired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told parliamentarians in August 2024 that the prime minister’s slogan of “absolute victory” was “nonsense” and “meaningless.”
Last June, an Israeli military spokesperson also disputed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war aims.
“The idea that it is possible to destroy Hamas and make Hamas disappear is throwing sand in the eyes of the people,” Maj. Gen. Daniel Hagari told Israeli media.
He added: “Hamas is an ideology deeply rooted in the hearts of the people of Gaza.”
In the same month, former army minister Avigdor Liberman also suggested that Netanyahu had egg on his face.
“It has been exactly eight months since the October 7th attack. During these eight months, we have suffered not a ‘total victory’ but a complete humiliation,” said Lieberman, member of parliament and leader of the Yisrael Beytenu party. spoke.
Yair Lapid: “Israel’s military strategy in Gaza is a failure”
In June 2024, National Unity Chairman Benny Gantz said Prime Minister Netanyahu’s promises of a “total victory” against Hamas were “empty.”
Gantz, a former war minister, left the emergency coalition government due to deepening rifts over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans after the Gaza conflict.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid also called Israel’s military strategy in Gaza a “failure”.
Similarly, in mid-February last year, a document produced by Israeli military intelligence acknowledged that even if Israel dismantled Hamas’s organized military capabilities, the resistance group would continue to operate in Gaza.
Furthermore, Israel’s failure to achieve its military goals in the Gaza war and its failure to prevent the al-Aqsa storm led to the resignation of senior military and security officials.
Al-Aqsa Storm was a surprise military operation carried out by Hamas in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which was followed by Israel’s brutal war against Gaza.
The Hamas operation left more than 1,100 people dead and about 250 captured. Dozens of prisoners are still being held in Gaza and are expected to be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners during the ceasefire.
Decades of heinous crimes by Israel against Palestinians released the genie from the bottle on October 7th and continue to haunt Israeli leaders. A ceasefire will not put the toothpaste back in the tube and stop the flow of resistance.
Israel now sees the cease-fire as a tactic to cover up the regime’s military failures and distract from growing outrage over war crimes and crimes against humanity.