Brinkmanship leaves Gaza ceasefire at a critical point

In an abrupt move, Hamas militants announced yesterday that they would delay the next release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, accusing Israel of systematically violating the terms of the ceasefire.

- BEL TREW

Israel’s defence minister hit back, calling that a “complete violation” of the deal and ordering the Israeli military “to prepare at the highest level of alert” for any possible scenarios.

What was already an incredibly fragile and complex agreement appears, once again, to be on the brink of collapse at a critical moment as talks for the next stage of the multi-phased truce were supposed to be moving forward.

Its demise would crush the hopes of Palestinian civilians, who have survived 15 months of ferocious bombardment and want to rebuild their homes and lives.

It would shatter the hopes of the families of the hostages in Israel, who are desperate to see their loved ones and have grown increasingly horrified by the conditions of those being released.

Even if these issues are resolved, the brinkmanship exposes again how tentative a building block this deal is for long-term, sustainable peace.

Just hours before the counteraccusations of violations, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said an Israeli delegation had returned from talks in Qatar for the next stage, with no news on how they had progressed. A group representing families of those taken captive by Hamas called for international intervention, fearing this is the last chance to get their relatives out.