Netanyahu’s Trap!

The already fragile ceasefire in Gaza was further shattered as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel had “resumed combat in full force” against Hamas in the Gaza Strip on March 18, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In the hours following Netanyahu’s announcement, Israeli airstrikes – which had already been routinely violating the ceasefire in recent weeks – killed more than 400 Palestinians, including a significant number of children. Later that day, Israeli forces launched a new ground offensive, reportedly killing at least 48 more Palestinians, according to local health workers.

Vowing to eradicate Hamas, Netanyahu described the renewed phase of state terrorism as “just the beginning”. Meanwhile, Israeli sources confirmed that the assault was conducted in “full coordination” with the United States. Also on Wednesday, Israel carried out an attack on a UN facility in central Gaza City, killing a foreign staffer and wounding five others. Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of the UN Office for Project Services, condemned the strike, stating: “Israel knew this was a UN compound where people were living and working. It is a well-known location.”

From the outset, Netanyahu’s office has justified the assault by accusing Hamas of preparing new attacks, refusing to release hostages, and rejecting all proposals put forward by US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and other mediators. At the UN Security Council meeting on Gaza, convened just hours after the renewed Israeli offensive, the US envoy placed exclusive blame on Hamas for the collapse of the ceasefire. According to the Israeli government, approximately 59 Israeli captives remain in Gaza, with fewer than half believed to be still alive. Hamas, however, denied rejecting the US envoy’s proposal, accusing Netanyahu of deliberately resuming hostilities to sabotage the ceasefire agreement. The group characterized Israel’s actions as a “unilateral” annulment of the existing deal.

Arab countries, including Egypt and Qatar – both key mediators in the peace negotiations – have strongly condemned Israel’s latest military escalation. On March 20, the US State Department reaffirmed the “bridge proposal” put forward by the US President Donald Trump’s administration last week. It aims to extend the first phase of the ceasefire and hostage release agreement between Israel and Hamas, and remains on the table. Given this backdrop, the question arises: What is driving Netanyahu’s genocidal ambitions?


A zero-sum game?

Netanyahu appears to be maneuvering to reduce the original multiphase ceasefire agreement to just its first phase, securing the release of all Israeli hostages before resuming his military campaign in Gaza. Hamas, however, recognizes the trap. At present, neither the US nor mediators like Egypt and Qatar can offer Hamas any guarantees that if it releases all remaining hostages – both dead and alive – Israel will commit to entering the second phase of the agreement.

It is worth recalling that Israel had already delayed negotiations for the second phase, which was initially scheduled to begin 16 days after the agreement took effect. By the time phase one was set to conclude on March 1, Israel had refused to advance talks, effectively stalling the diplomatic process.

Since March 2, Israel has taken increasingly punitive measures against Gaza. According to the UN, it has blocked the entry of all lifesaving supplies, including food, medicine, fuel, and cooking gas, affecting 2.1 million people. It has also sealed off all crossing points and, on March 9, ordered a complete shutdown of Gaza’s electricity supply. The blackout has severely impacted desalination plants, which provide clean drinking water to some 600,000 people. Yet, despite these actions, Israel continues to evade accountability for its collective punishment of Gaza’s population.

What is Israel’s endgame for Gaza?

Israel appears to be accelerating efforts to implement what some critics describe as a plan to radically reshape Gaza’s demographic and political future. Netanyahu, frustrated by his failure to eliminate Hamas and achieve clear strategic objectives, is pampered by Trump’s proposal to “take over” and “own” the Gaza Strip. At present, Netanyahu is exploiting the geopolitical status— including high-level talks between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin over Ukraine and the US military campaign against the Houthis in Yemen—which have diverted international attention away from Gaza. This distraction provides him with an opportunity to escalate the attacks with fewer diplomatic constraints.

However, Netanyahu’s thirst for blood is not only deepening the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza but also exacerbating regional tensions, pushing the Middle East toward prolonged instability. His actions risk triggering wider spillover effects, particularly in Lebanon and Syria, and further escalating an already volatile landscape. The pressing question remains: does Israel have a long-term strategy for Gaza, or is it merely waging a campaign of destruction with no viable political exit strategy? Another crucial consideration is, following their emergency summit in Cairo on March 4, how will the Arab League reconcile Egypt’s reconstruction plan with Israel’s relentless aggression?

The urgency of a concerted diplomatic and strategic effort to curb Israeli aggression and expansionism cannot be overstated. Without immediate intervention, the entire region will bear the long-term consequences of unchecked military escalation and political destabilization.

Serhan Afacan is associate professor at Marmara University’s Institute for Middle East Studies and president of Center for Iranian Studies (İRAM).

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In a Psychedelic Arab World

Dr Khairi Janbek

The Arab world has been for some time now like a theme park with all the trappings. There are zones of fun and entertainment, with bright lights, cafes and restaurants with people living in them whilst other zones stand like halls of mirrors with distort images, chambers of horror, and ghost trains with their own population.

The ones who run both zones tend to be standing outside them frequently greeting each other. But the people of the entertainment zone are always wary that the people of the other zone may envy them, so they give them enough to let them carry on with their lives as best as they can.

The obsession with the geographical and civilizational unity of the Arab world has always inflated expectations of Arab solidarity as a tool to solve the problems of Arab societies ranging from economic development and good governance, to conflict resolution.

As the expectations go unmet, popular frustration at the weakness of one nation, prompt further calls for solidarity accompanied with anger from the other Arab people, however, it seems, and for all intents and purposes, the pan-Arab hopes seem to be always unreasonable. In fact when the colonialists thought that the Arab peoples should be grateful to each have their own nation-states across the geographical span, the Arab peoples, as a whole, felt cheated for not having a single, one-state to represent them.

As for the current Palestinian tragedy, its roots in recent terms have been planted in 1974, when the late King Hussein was put under extreme pressure to accept the notion that, the PLO, being the sole representative of the Palestinian people, in other words transferring the Arab burden of the Palestinian problem to the shoulders of the late Yasser Arafat.

Of course, one is not going to repeat the horrors which came after that regarding this issue, but the idea that the Palestinian issue being an Arab cause, ended there and then. The Palestinian issue went from being a political issue, to a mere human rights concern, with the option for the Arab states to support according to the levels of anger expressed by their own populace regarding the Palestinian people’s plight.

It was Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990 that struck the final nail in the coffin of the illusion that there can be an Arab solution to Arab problems, but even this illusion did not apply to the Palestinian problem, because that concern was gone almost two decades earlier.

So today, it is natural for sympathy for the Palestinians to direct its call to the international community to react, because frankly this is the only quarter which can do something, whatever it may be, because the realization had set in from before that the Arabs will not do anything.

We live in times now, in which no Middle Eastern regime, in addition to those having a state within a state inside them, will be ever permitted to ever threaten Israel by the Trump administration, be that through the threats of dividing countries, or in throwing them to the jaws of poverty and destruction through economic extortion; in fact, we are in the era of enforced ugly peace.

Dr Janbek is a columnist based in Paris France.

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Israel, Trump and the Latest Bombing of Gaza

Israel relaunched its bloody war on Gaza, with vehemence and callousness and with the blessing of the Donald Trump administration in the White House.

Its back to the “good old bloody days” of murder, mayhem and slaughter of mostly innocent women and children who have no part in the current war waged between Israel and Hamas.

Unwilling to quench its thirst for blood, Israel relaunched its war on the 364-kilometer Gaza Strip by killing over 322 people in the first five hours of early morning Tuesday while everyone was fast asleep.

Up until then it has been a “slight” rest bite reached through a ceasefire on 19 January between Hamas and Israel through US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators bringing an end to the daily killing of Gazans that today stands at 48,500 people.

Everyone is asking if the ceasefire is wrecked and stands in ruin on day 525, the total length of the carnage started on the people of Gaza soon after 7 October 2023, when about 1200 Israelis were killed.

Whatever the politics of the recent war, it has become amply clear the Israel slaughter has not been aimed at Hamas fighters, which it couldn’t eradicate even after 15 months of war on the Islamic organization but resulted in the mass killing of the women and children of Gaza.

The latest spate of dropping bombs on the people of Gaza, facilitated by the United States which stands as complicit in this genocide, sees no end light, but is seen as just the beginning although Gaza and its infrastructure is already annihilated with its people displaced and living in the wild and under the skies.

The world stands and waits to see, if the genocide will continue from this day onwards, or is it just a pressure tool to get Hamas to release the 59 or so Israeli prisoners it currently holds. If the latter is the case however, Hamas has long shown, it has a long breath and will not release the prisoners that originally were around 250 and now stands at the current number through exchange deals with the fact that the Israeli army has killed around 23 of them in failed rescue operations.

The latest bombings, carried from the air starting from the south of the strip on the southern city of Rafah, Nuseirat, Al Shati and Maghazi camps, and Deir Al Balah in the center of the enclave, including Gaza city and the destroyed northern areas, speaks of dark days are expected ahead.

Hamas are yet to respond militarily. There are couple of issues to consider here. Hamas officials have been talking to the Trump administration officials in the last couple of weeks about different paths.

Will that continue, particularly after this bloody debacle. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who long wanted to destroy Hamas, and thus the war to continue, said this time around, the latest military operation in Gaza is being carried out “in consultation” with Trump and his associates.

If this is the case, the latest Israeli deadly spate, may not last long, particularly because Trump is on record of stating that he doesn’t want the war to continue but wants to end it which means he will not continue to supply Israel with weapons indefinitely and there will come a time when he will stop.

But that might be a while before that and he may continue to tolerate the mass bombing of Gaza. However, since he is talking to different parties through his envoy Steve Witkoff, he will likely “manage” what Israel continues to militarily do in the Gaza Strip and be involved in a “stop-go” war process.

The problem with Trump is that also he is looking for different objectives in Gaza. He first wanted to displace its 2.2 million people to neighboring countries like Jordan and Egypt. Now, he appears to be retracting from this position because of Arab and world pressure.  

Will he backdown and order Israel for a quick “fix” and or let the war on Gaza continue by which time Hamas, will once again, start fighting Israel again, both in the Strip and through endlessly targeting its major cities, towns, settlements for the past 15 months.

Despite the fact that Trump said that “all hell will break lose” on Gaza if the war doesn’t stop and Hamas is not brought to heed, the US president is choosing to forget the Houthis, despite mass bombing them in the last couple of days. They promised they will continue to strike Israel if it continues to stand as an obstacle to humanitarian and food delivery to Israel and will not be deterred by US and British bombing of Yemen. And to prove their point, a ballistic missile was fired on the same day, Tuesday, after the Israeli bombing of the Strip.

Hence what Trump wants and what he will get on the ground are two different things. His wish to end the Israel-Hamas war and establish a “new Gaza” will not be achieved through parochial thinking.

The Palestinians are on the ground, they have no wish to go anywhere while Hamas continues to have a formidable fighting capability and have no qualms to going back to war. The fact they are talking to the mediating parties, including the US doesn’t mean they are ready to put their guns down and leave the grounds of Gaza.

Netanyahu must realize that unless he wants the whole Middle East region to be engaged in a perpetual long-term war. The question is Trump and the United States military establishment prepared for that?

The above-analysis is written by Dr Marwan Asmar, chief editor of the crossfirearabia.com website.

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White House Complicity: Bloody Days Return to Gaza

The Israeli army said early Tuesday that it has conducted airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, the largest since a ceasefire with the Palestinian group Hamas took effect on Jan. 19.

“Based on directives from the political echelon, IDF and Shin Bet forces are launching a large-scale attack on Hamas terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip,” military spokesman Avichay Adraee said on X.

Local media, citing the Palestinian civil emergency service, said at least 200 people have been killed, including women and children.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have instructed the army to take “strong action” against Hamas in Gaza, the Prime Ministry’s Office said.

“This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators,” it said in a statement.

The army is attacking Hamas targets in the Strip “to achieve the objectives of the war as they have been determined by the political echelon, including the release of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased.”

“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength. The operational plan was presented by the IDF over the weekend and approved by the political leadership,” it added.

Hamas said the Israeli government has declared war on Gaza by breaking the ceasefire agreement.

“We demand that the mediators hold Netanyahu and the Zionist occupation fully responsible for violating and overturning the agreement,” it said in a statement.

Israel consulted with US: White House

A White House spokesperson confirmed Monday that Israel consulted with the US on its airstrikes in Gaza.

“As President (Donald) Trump has made it clear: Hamas, the Houthis, Iran, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel, but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay. All hell will break loose,” Karoline Leavitt told Fox News.

Ahead of a meeting Tuesday of the UN Security Council on Gaza, Israeli ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said the country will show “no mercy” against its enemies.

“Let me be very clear: Israel will not stop until all of our hostages are back home. We will make it very clear to the Security Council that if they want to stop the war in Gaza, they have to ensure that the hostages are coming back to Israel,” Danon said.

The UN did not immediately react to the strikes, but deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said the UN has consistently warned against a return to fighting in Gaza.

Despite the ceasefire, local authorities in Gaza had reported almost daily violations by the Israeli army.

Israeli attacks have killed more than 48,500 Palestinians since October 2023, most of them women and children, and left Gaza in ruins.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November last year for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

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Trump: ‘Nobody is Expelling Any Palestinians,’ From Gaza

U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to reverse his controversial plan to forcibly expel Palestinians from Gaza, following widespread rejection, stating, “nobody is expelling any Palestinians” from the war-torn enclave.

During an Oval Office meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin on Wednesday, a reporter asked about Trumps plans to expel Palestinians from Gaza and whether he had discussed the matter with the Irish leader. Trump responded, “Nobody is expelling any Palestinians,” according to the Quds News Network.

Trump had previously proposed permanently and forcibly displacing Palestinians from Gaza and transforming the area into what he called the “Riviera of the Middle East.” His plan envisioned a developed, Palestinian-free zone under US control and ownership, where “the world’s people” could reside.

He also suggested that Jordan and Egypt take in displaced Palestinians, a proposal that both countries firmly rejected. Legal experts, along with Palestinians, condemned the plan, calling it “ethnic cleansing.”

Hamas has welcomed Trump’s Wednesday remarks. Hazem Qassem, spokesperson for Hamas, said, “If President Trump’s statements represent a reversal of the plan of displacing the people of Gaza, they are welcomed. We call for this stance to be followed by holding the occupation accountable for implementing all ceasefire agreements,” urging Trump not to “align with the extremist right-wing Zionist agenda.”

Meanwhile Jordan, Thursday welcomed President Trump’s remarks made on Wednesday, which affirmed that the residents of Gaza would not be required to leave the war-torn Strip, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

Sufyan Qudah, the ministry’s spokesperson, reiterated Jordan’s support for efforts aimed at achieving a peace that is acceptable to all parties, highlighting that both Jordan and the United States are partners in these efforts according to The Jordan Times.

Qudah also underscored the importance of securing a just and lasting peace, one that leads to the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. He reaffirmed that the two-state solution remains the only viable pathway to ensuring long-term security, stability, and peace in the region.

Trump said on Wednesday that “nobody is expelling any Palestinians from Gaza,” in response to a question during a meeting in the White House with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin.

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