After more than five months of a war that has ravaged the Gaza Strip, diplomatic efforts are intensifying to achieve a truce.
While the humanitarian situation is getting worse every day, we can note some diplomatic progress. Negotiations for a truce and the release of the hostages continue in Doha, Qatar, with Qatari and Egyptian mediators.
In Ramallah, we think about the post-war
The new Palestinian prime minister said Tuesday he would appoint a technocratic government and create a special international and independent fund to oversee the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
Mohammad Mustafa outlined broad plans for the new type of Palestinian Authority that the United States is calling for, as part of its post-war vision for resolving the conflict.
But the Palestinian Authority has no power in the Gaza Strip, where Hamas drove its forces out in 2007, and has only limited authority in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has, for his part, ruled out any return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza and his government is firmly opposed to the creation of a Palestinian state.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas appointed Mustafa as prime minister last week. The U.S.-trained economist and longtime adviser to Abbas is an independent with no political base.
Death of Hamas number three
The announcement came from Washington, Israel has not confirmed the death of Marwan Issa, number three in the Palestinian Islamist movement. He was reportedly killed in an Israeli raid in the Gaza Strip on the night of March 9-10. This was indicated on Monday by the national security adviser to the American executive, Jake Sullivan.
Marwan Issa was also deputy to Mohammed Deif, considered Hamas’ number two, and who heads the al-Qassam brigades, the armed wing of Hamas. These fighters were behind the attack of October 7, 2023, which left more than 1,100 dead on Israeli soil.
His death is considered a victory for the Israeli army which has been hunting down Hamas leaders since October 7. The IDF’s objective is to get their hands on Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli delegation in Washington
For several weeks, relations have been tense between Tel Aviv and Washington. A few days ago, Chuck Schumer, the Democratic majority leader in the US Senate, called for elections in Israel, calling Benjamin Netanyahu, “obstacle to peace”.
For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed Monday to send a team of Israeli officials to Washington to discuss a possible operation in Rafah with Biden administration officials, with each side seeking to “make the other party understand their point of view“said Jake Sullivan.
He said the discussions would take place in the coming days and were expected to involve military, humanitarian and intelligence experts.
The White House has been skeptical of Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to carry out an operation in the town of Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip, where around 1.5 million Palestinians have taken refuge.
According to Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden once again urged the Israeli Prime Minister not to carry out an operation in Rafah.
He said U.S. officials would present “an alternative approach that would target key Hamas elements in Rafah and secure the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip without a major ground operation“.
The United States is therefore opposed to a major ground invasion, which does not exclude targeted operations by the Israeli army.