Gaza’s fragile ceasefire threatened by Israel’s attack on WB

In the aftermath of a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, tensions are rising due to an escalation of Israeli military operations in the occupied West Bank. 

For the fourth day in a row, the Israeli army has been launching a large-scale military assault on the occupied West Bank city of Jenin under the pretext of eliminating the “Palestinian resistance”. So far, the Israeli army killed about 12 Palestinians, including children, and forced hundreds of families to be displaced from their homes. 

The Israel’s attack on Jenin pushed many residents in the war-torn Gaza Strip to express a growing sense of dread that the attack on the occupied West Bank could spill over back again to the besieged coastal enclave.  

Speaking to The New Arab, Palestinians in Gaza opined that the Israeli crimes in Jenin aims to provoke the Palestinian resistance in Gaza to launch rockets, which means that the fragile ceasefire will end soon. 

“We have barely had time to breathe since the ceasefire started a few days ago. We are still stuck in an unknown future, so we cannot bear another war,” Om Ismail, a displaced Palestinian woman in Deir al-Balah, remarked to TNA. 

“Now we hear about the suffering in Jenin, and it feels like it’s only a matter of time before the bombs fall on us again […] I am scared of the war’s return once again,” said the 35-year-old mother of three. 

‘This affects us all’

Sama Adel, another Palestinian woman from Gaza City, expressed similar fears of Israel’s war resuming if the Gaza-based Palestinian resistance decides to respond to the Israeli army. 

“The world needs to understand that what happens in Jenin affects us all,” she said. “Gaza stands with the West Bank, and now we do not have the power to provide our solidarity with them and stop the Israeli aggression.” 

“We cannot afford another war,” remarked Omar Al-Najjar, a businessman in Gaza City. “Our homes are still in ruins, and our children are traumatized. Jenin is suffering, but another war will only add to our collective pain.” 

“Jenin is our cause, but we’ve paid the price of war too many times. The resistance should think carefully about the consequences of dragging Gaza into another round of destruction,” he added. 

Yasir al-Rasi, another displaced Palestinian, shared a different opinion. He told TNA, “The ceasefire was supposed to give us some stability, but how can there be peace when our brothers and sisters in the West Bank are under attack?” 

“Every time Jenin bleeds, Gaza bleeds too. We are one people,” he said. However, he holds the “weak” Arab countries responsible for Israeli crimes in the Palestinian territories.

“All the Arab countries, including the King of Saudi Arabia, seeking to normalise their relationships with Israel over our blood,” he said bitterly. 

“For 15 months, Israelis used to kill us, destroy our houses and end our lives, but the Arab states were busy dealing with Israel to end the Palestinian resistance,” he added. 

Amid rising tensions, many residents in Gaza are urging Hamas and other Palestinian armed factions to exercise restraint and avoid actions that could lead to another devastating war. Having endured repeated conflicts, Palestinians in Gaza are extremely wary of the catastrophic consequences of renewed hostilities.

Israel’s ‘dangerous game’

Despite calls for restraint, senior Hamas officials have reiterated warnings to Israel regarding its continued violence on the occupied West Bank.  

“The blood of our people in Jenin will not be ignored. Gaza stands ready to defend all Palestinian lands, and the resistance will act, if necessary,” a senior Hamas official based in Turkey, who preferred not to mention his name, said to TNA. 

“The aggression against our people in the West Bank is a continuation of the Zionist occupation’s crimes. This systematic violence will only strengthen the resolve of the resistance,” he added. 

“The blood of our people in Jenin is no different from the blood of our people in Gaza. We warn the occupation: if the aggression continues, the resistance will respond with full force,” another Hamas official said, also on the condition of anonymity. 

He further called on the Arab and Islamic countries to pressure Israel to stop its war on the Palestinians. “In Palestine, there are holy Islamic places which do not belong to the Palestinians only but also to all Muslims. We [Hamas] do not know why all the world remains silent towards the Israeli crimes,” he stressed.

Adel Samarah, Palestinian political expert in Ramallah, told TNA, “The military escalation in Jenin is a deliberate attempt by Israel to fragment the Palestinian struggle. By focusing on the West Bank, the Israeli occupation is trying to test Hamas‘s resolve and the resilience of the Gaza ceasefire.”

“It’s a dangerous game that risks destabilising the entire region,” he said, stressing the importance of avoiding actions that could lead to renewed war. 

“Hamas faces a complex dilemma,” according to Mustafa Ibrahim, a Gaza-based political expert. “They must balance their role as the defenders of Palestinian unity with the harsh reality that Gaza cannot withstand another large-scale conflict. The cost of another war would be politically and economically catastrophic.”