Gaza and Trump’s Ambitions… A “Fragile” Truce Struggling to Hold
Pressures are mounting in Israel to extend the fragile ceasefire in Gaza beyond the first phase.
Talks on the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, aimed at securing the release of more hostages and Israel’s complete withdrawal from Gaza, were scheduled to begin on February 3.
However, Israel and Hamas seem to have made little progress, even as Israeli forces withdrew on Sunday from the Netzarim corridor, which separates northern Gaza from its central and southern regions, in the latest commitment to the ceasefire.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a delegation to Qatar, but it consisted of lower-level officials, sparking speculation that no significant breakthrough was expected.
The Israeli government previously stated that the delegation would initially discuss “technical matters” related to the first phase of the ceasefire rather than the more challenging second phase, which is supposed to lead to a permanent truce, the exchange of all remaining hostages in Gaza for more Palestinian prisoners, and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory.
Netanyahu, who recently returned from a visit to the United States to meet with former President Donald Trump, is expected to convene a security cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
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Netanyahu Caught Between Conflicting Pressures
At the same time, Netanyahu is facing pressure from his far-right political allies to resume the war. Trump’s suggestion that the United States take control of the Gaza Strip could further complicate the situation.
Trump Reiterates His Stance
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on his way to the Super Bowl, Trump reiterated on Sunday his commitment to taking control of Gaza.
“I am committed to buying and owning Gaza. As for its reconstruction, we may hand it over to other Middle Eastern countries to build parts of it. Others may take part in rebuilding it under our supervision. But we are committed to owning it, taking control, and ensuring that Hamas does not return,” he stated.
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He added, “There is nothing left to return to. The place is a demolition site. The rest will be torn down.”
International Backlash and Arab Response
While Trump’s comments about removing more than two million Palestinians from Gaza were welcomed in Israel, they sparked global condemnation and outrage across the Arab and Islamic worlds.
Egypt announced that it would host an emergency Arab summit on February 27 to discuss the “new and dangerous developments” in the Palestinian territories.
Amid Israeli support and international and Arab opposition, observers suggest that Trump’s proposal might be a negotiation tactic to pressure Hamas or an opening maneuver in discussions aimed at securing a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
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On Sunday, Saudi Arabia and several Arab nations strongly rejected Netanyahu’s remarks about expelling Palestinians and establishing a Palestinian state in the kingdom.
“The Kingdom firmly rejects such statements, which aim to divert attention from the ongoing crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against Palestinian brothers in Gaza, including acts of ethnic cleansing,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Additionally, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Aty traveled to Washington on Sunday for talks with senior Trump administration officials and members of Congress.
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Will the Ceasefire Hold?
The ceasefire, which began on January 19, has held so far, raising hopes that the 471-day war—one that has caused seismic shifts in the Middle East—might be approaching its end.
The latest step in the ceasefire was Israel’s withdrawal from the six-kilometer-long Netzarim corridor, which had been used as a military zone during the war.
Since the ceasefire began last month, Israel has allowed hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to cross the Netzarim corridor and return to northern Gaza.
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There are still three more rounds of prisoner exchanges remaining in the first phase of the agreement.
However, the deal remains fragile. On Sunday, Israeli forces killed three people east of Gaza City.
While Israel insists on staying in Gaza until Hamas’s military and political capabilities are completely dismantled, the group has stated that it will not release the remaining hostages until Tel Aviv withdraws all its forces.
Under the first phase of the ceasefire, which is set to last 42 days, Hamas is expected to gradually release 33 Israeli hostages taken during its October 7, 2023 attack—an attack that ignited the war—in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and the increased flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The war, which erupted following Hamas’s assault, has resulted in the deaths of more than 47,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s local health authorities. Entire neighborhoods have been devastated by Israeli airstrikes.
During its attack on settlements surrounding Gaza, Hamas took 251 hostages and killed approximately 1,200 people.
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Escalating Violence in the West Bank
As the war rages in Gaza, violence in the West Bank has also escalated, intensifying in recent days with Israeli military operations in northern cities.
On Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz announced the expansion of an ongoing operation in Jenin, which had begun weeks earlier. He claimed the move was aimed at preventing Iran from establishing a foothold in the West Bank.
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