You Asked For This Ceasefire, Mr. President; Make Sure It Holds

World Views

- The Editorial Board

Before examining the pitfalls and weaknesses of the Gaza ceasefire, let us welcome even the least of what it may achieve. Fifteen months after the horrendous Hamas attack on Israel and the launch of Israel's retaliatory invasion, the Gaza Strip is a moonscape, most of its two million inhabitants homeless, hungry and in despair, and those hostages who are still alive, in the cruel hands of Hamas terrorists, have been torn from their loved ones simply too long. Even the release of only some of the hostages, and even a few weeks of unrestricted humanitarian assistance into Gaza, is good news.

The deal is a tribute to the many months of relentless efforts by the Biden administration and mediators from Egypt and Qatar, and an 11th-hour push from Donald Trump. Debates have already erupted over who deserves credit for finally achieving a ceasefire and who is to blame for delaying it so long, but the incontrovertible fact is that the United States still holds powerful sway over events in the Middle East—including the fate of this agreement, which will require huge effort.

The agreement calls for three phases, of which only the first is described in detail. The initial stage is to last six weeks, during which 33 hostages—women, men over 50, the sick and the wounded—and several hundred Palestinian prisoners are to be exchanged. Israel is to allow a surge of aid into the enclave, and Israeli troops are to start withdrawing from population centers.

Negotiations on the second, more difficult phase are to begin while the first is being carried out, and are supposed to cover the release of all remaining living captives held by Hamas and more Palestinians held by Israel, and Israel's "complete withdrawal."