Relations between Tel Aviv and Washington is it is becoming clear that White House officials are talking to Hamas. The US-based Axios website quoted an Israeli informed official as saying that Israeli envoy to the United States Ron Dermer, who is close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had a tense call with American hostage envoy Adam Boehler about the matter.
Axios political correspondent and Middle East expert Barak Ravid explained Israel’s concerns about the Trump administration’s secret negotiations with Hamas erupted in a controversial phone call last Tuesday between Dermer and Boehler.
He revealed that the aids of US President Donald Trump informed Israeli officials early last month of the possibility of dealing directly with Hamas, and the Israelis then advised the American side against doing so, especially without preconditions. However, Israel discovered through other channels that the United States was moving forward in that direction nevertheless.
No direct criticism of Trump
Netanyahu avoided criticizing Trump publicly since Axios revealed the unprecedented talks between the United States and Hamas last Wednesday, and has only said that Israel has made its opinion clear to the United States.
But hours after Boehler met in Doha with Hamas leader and head of the negotiating team, Khalil al-Hayya, Dermer did not hold back in expressing Israel’s concerns about the talks.
The American message was such a deal would go a long way with Trump, who would then push for a broader deal that could include a long-term truce, safe passage for Hamas leaders out of Gaza, release of all remaining prisoners, and an end to the war. The alternative would be a renewed Israeli military campaign to destroy Hamas.
Trump and his advisers had hoped for a breakthrough before his address to Congress the previous Tuesday, but found Hamas’s response inadequate.
Israeli Concern
The reporter said that while Netanyahu was initially averse to the idea of the United States sitting down with Hamas, he and his advisers became increasingly concerned as the idea became a reality.
Ravid quoted his sources as saying that Dermer objected to Boehler making proposals without Israel’s consent, and Boehler responded that the talks did not come close to a deal with Hamas, and that he understood Israel’s parameters.
An Israeli official claimed that Dermer’s tense call with Boehler prompted the White House to reassess its approach.
The site explained that when Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff joined the efforts to reach a deal on Gaza in the final days of the administration of former US President Joe Biden, he suggested holding a direct meeting with Hamas to accelerate the talks, but that ultimately did not happen then, an Israeli official and a former US official said.
Pressure on Hamas
Trump and his advisers held a long meeting last Wednesday about the talks with Hamas, and decided that they needed to send a strong public message.
A US official said the idea was to pressure Hamas to make concessions and make clear that the US position on the movement had not changed.
On Wednesday evening, shortly after meeting with a group of the released hostages, Trump issued a new public ultimatum to Hamas to release all remaining hostages, describing it as a final warning.
On Thursday, Trump defended the talks with Hamas, describing them as beneficial to Israel “because we are talking about Israeli hostages.”
Luring Political Capital
Steve Witkoff, who is scheduled to travel to the region early next week, said the release of American hostage Alexander is the administration’s “top priority,” noting that he is wounded.
He said “good humanitarian action by Hamas” regarding Alexander “will get them a lot of political capital,” and stressed that there is a “deadline” for Hamas to agree to a deal.
Trump’s envoy said that if Hamas does not take a more “reasonable” approach, “there will be some action by Israel.”
Netanyahu’s manipulation of the ceasefire agreement and US complicity in extending phase one reveal Israel’s ongoing strategy to delay peace and continue its genocidal actions against Palestinians.
The three-phase ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Resistance, while offering a fleeting glimmer of hope for ending Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza, was never likely to succeed. Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to break the ceasefire by blocking food and medical aid from entering Gaza—furthering war-crime starvation—was not a matter of “if” but “when.”
The ceasefire agreement was carefully designed to be implemented in three distinct phases, each to be implemented sequentially, with the oversight and verbal guarantees from the three key mediators: the United States, Qatar, and Egypt.
The integrity of the agreement hinges on the mediators’ ability to ensure that all parties remain fully committed to honoring its terms. Otherwise, what credibility would the mediators’ signatures or the mediation process hold if Netanyahu could simply demand to renegotiate an agreement that took at least 8 months to finalize?
Netanyahu is leading negotiations on two conflicting fronts: one with the Resistance to exchange Israeli captives for Palestinian hostages held in Israeli dungeons, and second with the racist warmonger’s wing in his government.
In preparation to break the agreement, and to placate his warmonger ministers, Netanyahu changed the negotiating team for phase two by replacing the heads of Mossad and Shaback with his alter ego, Ron Dermer, minister of strategic affairs. Dermer, who during a war cabinet meeting in mid-October 2023, told US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, “There won’t be a humanitarian crises [sic] in Gaza if no civilians are there.”
Talks for the second phase were scheduled to start the first week of February, but Israel did not show up at the negotiation table. In a desperate bid to buy time and secure American support, Netanyahu dispatched Dermer to Washington over a week ago. His mission: to sell the idea of renegotiating the current agreement and extend the first phase.
This tactic is emblematic of Netanyahu’s broader strategy— exploiting diplomatic engagements to maintain the status quo, buying time and maximizing the number of released Israeli captives by extending phase one before finishing his genocide war and ethnic cleansing in Gaza.
The timing is no coincidence. With growing international scrutiny mounting over Israel’s genocide in Gaza and the West Bank, Netanyahu is investing in Washington’s habitual deference to Israeli demands. By stalling negotiations, Netanyahu hopes to delay difficult political reckonings required in phase two, mainly ending the Israeli blockade and aggression on Gaza.
The Trump administration complied with Netanyahu’s request, pledging to dispatch its Middle East special envoy, Steve Witkoff, to renegotiate the current ceasefire agreement and floating an Israeli demand to extend phase one for an additional 50 days. Trump’s decision to heed the Israeli prime minister’s request so swiftly only serves to validate Netanyahu’s view of the US when he was caught on tape back in 2001 saying that “America is a thing you can move very easily.”
By acquiescing to Netanyahu’s maneuvering, Trump not only reinforced this perception but also risked undermining his own standing as a world leader. The pattern of deference to Israeli interests continues to resonate as a stark reflection of the bizarre dynamics in US-Israel relations, where America’s Middle East foreign policy is exclusively franchised to Israel and its Washington Jewish lobby.
Netanyahu’s latest scheme is a reminder that as long as Washington remains willing to be “moved” at Israel’s convenience, meaningful progress toward peace will remain unattainable. Rather than acting as an impartial mediator, the US continues to function as a complicit enabler, reinforcing the very power imbalances that perpetuate Israeli depravity and Palestinian adversity.
In endorsing Netanyahu’s demand to renegotiate the existing agreement rather than negotiating an end of war in phase two, the Trump administration is effectively empowering Netanyahu’s prevarications. This allows Israel to prolong Palestinians’ suffering while appearing to engage in negotiations. In reality, the extension serves as a tool for Netanyahu to consolidate his power amid domestic political turmoil, neutralize international pressure, and further cement Israel’s occupation and apartheid policies.
By backing Netanyahu’s decision to halt humanitarian aid to Gaza—Trump, much like his predecessor—kowtows to Netanyahu’s wishes. America’s willingness to leverage its global influence in service of Israel is a major factor in the increasingly rigid Israeli position, enabling a racist Jewish government more invested in maintaining the status quo than in seeking genuine peace. Israeli intransigence is not merely an oversight—it is a deliberate policy intended to maintain Palestinian dispossession, statelessness, and subjugation.
Israel has also violated the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon by failing to fully withdraw from Lebanese territory within the 60-day timeframe stipulated under the American and French-mediated agreement. Additionally, it has breached the decades-old ceasefire treaty with Syria, launching countless air raids and occupying the buffer zone and army positions along the border.
Israel’s willingness to violate every agreement it signs is not a failure of diplomacy—it is a direct result of enabling a war criminal who has shown time and again that his only path forward is through bloodshed. If the international community truly seeks an end to this genocide, it must stop treating Netanyahu as a legitimate partner in peace and start holding him accountable for his crimes.
By denying Palestinians their agency and as long as Washington remains beholden to an Israel-centric foreign policy—shaped by doomsday messianic Christians and the Jewish lobby—Tel Aviv will continue to perpetuate repression, sustain aggression, and ensure the failure of phase two.
– Jamal Kanj is the author of “Children of Catastrophe,” Journey from a Palestinian Refugee Camp to America, and other books. He writes frequently on Arab world issues for various national and international commentaries. He contributed this article to The Palestine Chronicle
Israel’s decision to cut off all humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip until further notice is deeply concerning. This dangerous escalation exacerbates the ongoing humanitarian crisis and weaponises starvation as a tool of genocide. The decision coincides with increasingly inflammatory statements by Israeli officials, underscoring a deliberate intent to continue Israel’s crime of genocide by depriving Palestinians of their most basic needs and imposing conditions that threaten their survival.
The Israeli government announced on Sunday a total blockade on humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, shutting all border crossings. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also publicly declared plans for “further consequences,” disregarding the dire humanitarian crisis affecting over two million people.
— Abdel-Kader Muhtadie عبد القادر سعيد المهتدي (@akmuhtadie) March 5, 2025
Humanitarian aid is a fundamental right of civilians under international humanitarian law, with no exceptions, and there is no legal justification for Israel to deny Palestinians access to essential aid. Israel is not only using humanitarian aid as a bargaining chip for political and military gain, but is also deliberately enforcing a policy of systematic starvation, creating life-threatening conditions designed to make survival in the Gaza Strip impossible.
Israel’s repeated statements announcing its full coordination with the United States administration, which has explicitly stated its intention to displace the Strip’s entire population, confirm that the crimes of starvation and blocking of humanitarian aid are not isolated incidents or negotiating tools. Instead, they are part of a deliberate plan aligned with the US strategy to forcefully displace and depopulate the Gaza Strip.
Euro-Med Monitor warns that statements by Israeli ministers and Knesset members reveal a premeditated intent to exterminate the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip. International silence has allowed Israel and the US to move beyond threats and implement the total cut-off of humanitarian aid, advancing the 16-month genocide through blockade and starvation, with apparent impunity.
Most of the statements made by senior Israeli officials, including one on opening “the gates of hell” on the enclave and blocking all humanitarian aid to its residents, coupled with Israel’s actions on the ground, amount to direct and public incitement to genocide. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich declared that halting the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza is an “important step in the right direction,” further stating that Israel must “open those gates as quickly and lethally as possible on the cruel enemy, until absolute victory”.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar dismissed warnings from the United Nations and international organisations regarding the risk of renewed famine in the Gaza Strip amid the tightened blockade and halting of humanitarian aid. Sa’ar said he considered these warnings to be “just a lie” and affirmed that the Israeli government has no commitment to delivering humanitarian aid.
Additionally, Israeli Knesset member and former Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir has declared that now is the best time to “open the gates of hell” and cut off electricity and water supplies to the Gaza Strip, urging continued efforts to implement plans for the forcible displacement of its residents. Israeli Knesset member Almog Cohen urged Israeli forces to kill Palestinians in Gaza “with no mercy” during the holy month of Ramadan, saying it “is the best time to kill them because they are weak and tired”.
The intention to commit genocide has been publicly expressed by the Israeli government and members of the mainstream Israeli media since the beginning of the genocide in Gaza on 7 October 2023, and even before that. Israeli Minister of Religious Services, Matan Kahana, previously voiced his wish to be able to “press a button” to expel all Palestinians. Following 7 October, genocidal rhetoric surged and making statements containing such rhetoric became a daily routine for senior Israeli officials, including the infamous statement by former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant: “We are imposing a complete siege on Gaza. There will be no electricity, no food, no water, no fuel, everything will be closed. We are fighting human animals, and we are acting accordingly.”
The inflammatory statements by Israeli officials could pave the way for an escalation of the genocide in the Gaza Strip, including in the conditions Israel has created to cause the physical destruction of the Palestinian population in whole or in part. The deliberate worsening of these conditions is being implemented through the ongoing blockade and denial of humanitarian aid, following over 15 months of relentless aggression targeting civilian facilities, infrastructure, hospitals, schools, and all aspects of daily life.
Israel’s blocking of humanitarian aid constitutes a war of starvation against the residents of the Gaza Strip, as they are entirely dependent on this aid for sustenance. Notably, the United Nations confirmed three days ago that there are many difficulties in delivering aid to residents of the Strip, and that the humanitarian conditions there have reached catastrophic levels.
Not only did Israel inflict widespread killing and massive destruction on the Gaza Strip for over 15 months, but it continues to implement policies that will effectively lead to the death of the Palestinian population without swift international intervention. This includes the ongoing Israeli policy of gradual killing of Palestinians through a comprehensive illegal blockade that obstructs the flow of humanitarian aid and essential materials, prevents the repair of vital infrastructure, and halts the provision of basic services necessary for the population’s survival.
Euro-Med Monitor emphasises that this Israeli policy can only be interpreted as a deliberate act of genocide as defined by the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which prohibits imposing living conditions on a group with the intent to destroy it, in whole or in part. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has continued to create conditions likely to result in the physical destruction of Palestinians in the long term, given the comprehensive nature of its actions, which affect all aspects of Palestinians’ lives, particularly due to the prolonged duration for which they have been subjected to such conditions.
All relevant states and entities must fulfil their legal responsibilities and take immediate action to halt the genocide in the Gaza Strip, compel Israel and the United States to adherence to international law, and implement effective measures to protect Palestinians from US-Israeli plans of slow killing and forced displacement. This includes activating an urgent response to meet the immediate needs of the population, resuming the unrestricted entry of all humanitarian aid, removing any blockades or restrictions that hinder ongoing relief efforts, and ensuring the provision of essential services such as healthcare, water, education, and temporary, adequate housing.
Euro-Med Monitor urges the international community to fulfill its legal and humanitarian responsibilities by ensuring the implementation of the International Court of Justice’s ruling on 28 March 2024. This includes the issuance of precautionary measures requiring Israel to take necessary and effective actions, in cooperation with the United Nations, to guarantee the unobstructed and timely entry of aid into the Gaza Strip, in accordance with its obligations under the Genocide Convention.
Syrian political analysts are warning that Israel is seeking to export its internal crises to Syria, following its military failure in the Al-Aqsa Flood battle in Gaza. They add Tel Aviv wants to fuel regional tensions to divert attention from its worsening internal crisis.
Weakening Syria to unite the Israelis
Member of the Syrian National Dialogue Conference Abdul Nasser Hawshan believes the recent Israeli escalation “aims to prevent the establishment of a strong Syrian state and destabilize the region,” adding the Israeli occupation government is trying to unite the Israelis behind it to escape the increasing internal and international pressures it is facing.
Hawshan told Quds Press, the recent National Dialogue Conference held in in country witnessed a national consensus on the unity and independence of Syria, and the rejected partition projects as espoused by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). He described such a project as a “separatist” one that “serves the Israeli agenda.”
He also pointed out that the Israeli incursions into southern Syria came “in response to this popular rejection of foreign plans.”
Druze position and rejection of Israeli intervention
Regarding the Druze community’s position in these developments, Hawshan explained that “some Druze leaders have adopted a discourse in line with the Israeli proposal,” but he stressed they “do not represent the Druze sect in general, which rejects any foreign intervention in Syrian affairs.”
He also denied the possibility of establishing the so-called Daoud Crossing, which links Israel to the areas under the control of the SDF, stressing “this project will not succeed under any circumstances.”
Irksome Turkey-Israel ties over the SDF
Political analyst Adel Hanif Daoud believes Israel is trying to exploit regional tensions to strengthen its position as an effective force, despite its escalating political and military crisis.
But Daoud warned that “any Israeli attempt to link the Druze and the SDF through the Tanf crossing could lead to an inevitable military confrontation with Turkey.” He noted Ankara considers the “Syrian Democratic Forces” a direct threat to its territorial integrity, and may resort to large-scale military intervention even if that leads to an international conflict.
He added the Druze leadership is divided between those who support Israel and those who are loyal to Damascus, but he expected that Druze leader Kamal Jumblatt would intervene to pressure the Druze community to reject the Israeli project.
As for the Turkish position, Daoud indicated that Ankara, as a member of NATO, has many political tools that it can use before resorting to the military option.
Military escalation in southern Syria
These warnings come in light of the escalation of Israeli military violations in southern Syria, as the occupation forces have intensified their airstrikes on sites in the Damascus countryside and Quneitra in recent weeks, targeting military and civilian infrastructure. Unprecedented Israeli military movements were also monitored along the occupied Golan Heights, amid reports of limited ground incursions.
In this context, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu escalated his rhetoric, stressing that his army would not allow the Syrian army or its allied forces to enter southern Syria, stressing Tel Aviv would not back down from its control of Mount Hermon, considering it a “strategic part of Israel’s national security.”
Damascus rejects Israeli aggression
For his part, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa stressed his categorical rejection of these attacks, considering them a threat to regional security and a continuation of the policies of aggression against Syria’s sovereignty.
In light of this escalation, Syria continues to defend its sovereignty and rights, while calls are increasing for the international community to act to stop Israeli violations, amid growing complications that threaten the stability of the entire region.
The physical and mental health conditions of the Palestinian detainees and prisoners released during the seventh round of the ceasefire exchange agreement between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip are shocking.
Israel’s release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, who arrived in the Gaza Strip recently in exceptionally poor health, illustrates its ongoing use of torture to terrorise and persecute prisoners and detainees and break their will until the very end of their detention. The effects of torture were clearly evident, with the emaciated bodies of the released individuals reflecting the severity of systematic crimes and inhumane treatment that exceed all legal and moral bounds.
The repeated release of such visibly unhealthy individuals from Israeli prisons reveals that the heinous torture and willful medical neglect they endure have escalated to appalling levels. Euro-Med Monitor notes that the atrocities occurring in these prisons are among the worst violations recorded by human rights organisations worldwide.
In a blatant violation of the mandatory rules of international law—which forbid torture in all its forms and under all circumstances, without exception, and consider its commission an international crime that does not expire by statute of limitations—hundreds of released prisoners and detainees arrived in the Gaza Strip after midnight in exceptionally poor health. It became evident after their transfer to the Gaza European Hospital in the southern section of the Strip that dozens of them required urgent medical care because their bodies showed signs of torture and inhumane treatment, including deprivation of necessary medical care and treatment.
Along with severe weakness and exhaustion, the Euro-Med Monitor field team documented severe injuries among detainees and prisoners, including limb amputations and severe swelling brought on by torture. Some appeared incapable of walking without the assistance of friends, and others required immediate medical attention because their health was rapidly deteriorating.
Even though the majority of detainees were not charged with any specific crimes, many of them claimed that they were beaten, mistreated, and threatened right up until the very last minute before their release. Since being kidnapped from the Gaza Strip at various points following 7 October 2023, they were arrested or detained, tortured, and subjected to degrading treatment as part of a systematic policy designed to cause them severe physical and psychological harm. This policy is a part of Israel’s crime of genocide, which aims to destroy the Palestinian people in the Strip, either entirely or partially, by weakening the foundations of their survival and leading them to submission or extinction.
Furthermore, the Euro-Med Monitor team documented Israel’s ongoing use of psychological torture and humiliation against recently released prisoners through the enforcement of laws that directly incite violence and genocide. This official systematic incitement is a fundamental tool of Israel’s policies against Palestinians, particularly those in the Gaza Strip. One example of these measures is the prison authorities’ requirement that newly released inmates and detainees wear vests with official Israeli Prison Service slogans and threatening phrases in Hebrew, including religious quotations that express the principle of revenge and pursuit until liquidation. Additionally, they are forced to wear plastic wristbands with derogatory words printed on them to psychologically degrade them and highlight the fact that they are still being singled out despite being “free”.
The phrase “I will pursue my enemies and overtake them; I will not return until I have destroyed them” is printed on the vests of Palestinian detainees and prisoners who have been released, and is taken from a biblical passage (Psalm 18:37) that expressly calls for killing and genocide. This is a form of direct and public incitement to genocide, which is forbidden by Article 3 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
By depriving the Palestinians of their humanity and treating them as a legitimate target for killing and targeting, Israel’s actions go beyond psychological warfare and constitute a dangerous extension of institutional hate speech and a consolidation of the intention to commit genocide.
The violations which Palestinian prisoners and detainees are subjected to by Israel, whether while these individuals are being held or being released, gravely violate international law and represent a blatant disregard for its mandatory regulations that forbid torture and cruel or inhuman treatment without exception. The Third and Fourth Geneva Conventions provide complete protection for prisoners and detainees, and forbid torture, humiliation, or retaliation, making these crimes punishable by international law.
The death of detainee Raafat Adnan Abdul Aziz Abu Fanouneh (34), who was tortured and abused following his arrest in the Gaza Strip in October 2023, was announced yesterday (Wednesday) in Israel’s Shamir Medical Centre (formerly Assaf Harofeh). A minimum of 60 prisoners and detainees—as these are the only victims whose identities are known—have perished in Israeli occupation prisons since the beginning of the genocide, including at least 39 individuals from the Gaza Strip. This is the highest number ever.
Israel continues to commit the crime of enforced disappearance against hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, failing to disclose their whereabouts or medical conditions to their loved ones, which raises serious concerns about the safety and lives of the people being held. Israel also continues to conceal any information about them from the press, despite credible evidence that dozens of additional prisoners and detainees have been killed inside Israeli prisons and detention facilities.
In addition to being crimes against humanity and full-fledged war crimes, the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation army and other Israeli security forces against Palestinian prisoners and detainees from the Gaza Strip also amount to acts of genocide against the Palestinian people in the Strip, because they are carried out in a systematic and brutal manner. These acts include the killing of Palestinians and the infliction of severe physical and psychological harm, including torture, other forms of ill-treatment, and sexual violence, including rape, and are carried out with the goal of eradicating the Palestinian people as a whole.
All countries and pertinent international organisations must take swift and decisive action to end Israel’s widespread and systematic crimes of killing, torture, and other serious violations against Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Detainees who have been arbitrarily arrested must be released without conditions, right away. Additionally, local and international organisations must be given immediate permission to visit detainees, who must be allowed the opportunity to choose their own lawyer.
Israel’s notorious arbitrary detention practices, such as administrative detention and detention under the “Unlawful Combatants Law”, must be stopped. These practices are a blatant violation of international law and are employed as a systematic, repressive tool to weaken the Palestinian will, tear apart the social fabric that holds them together, and deny Palestinians their fundamental legal rights.
To ensure justice for Palestinian victims and that the Israeli occupation is held responsible for its violations, human rights and media organisations must step up their efforts to pressure Israel’s government to stop its ongoing crimes. In addition, these groups must work to highlight the suffering of Palestinian prisoners and detainees and to share these individuals’ testimonies about the horrific crimes they face.
The International Criminal Court must investigate the crimes, submit specialised reports regarding the crimes committed against Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli prisons and detention facilities, particularly after 7 October 2023, and issue arrest warrants for all perpetrators. All concerned nations must make sure the perpetrators of these crimes are prosecuted and brought before the Court to stand trial.
Israel must immediately cease its crime of enforced disappearance against Palestinian prisoners and detainees from the Gaza Strip; reveal all secret detention camps; reveal the names, whereabouts, and fates of all Palestinians it is holding from the Strip; and take full responsibility for the safety and well-being of these individuals. These demands must come from the international community.
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