World View: Hamas Furious at Egypt's Cease-Fire Proposal as Violence Escalates

World View: Hamas Furious at Egypt's Cease-Fire Proposal as Violence Escalates

This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

  • Israel signals escalated military attack on Gaza on Wednesday morning
  • Hamas furious at Egypt’s cease-fire proposal, as violence escalates
  • Turkey’s prime minister Erdogan makes vitriolic attack on Israel

Israel signals escalated military attack on Gaza on Wednesday morning

On Tuesday, Israel ordered thousands of Palestinians in eastern andnorthern Gaza to leave their homes before 8 am on Wednesday. Israelis using recorded telephone messages and leaflets to notify Gazaresidents. It’s not known whether the new action will be an escalatedmissile attack or whether Israeli troops will be involved. BBC

Hamas furious at Egypt’s cease-fire proposal as violence escalates

Hamas rejected, and Israel accepted, the cease-fire proposal offeredby Egypt on Monday evening. The proposal called for a cease-firebetween Hamas and Israel to begin early Tuesday morning. Israel heldoff bombing Gaza for six hours to give Hamas a chance to consider theproposal, but during that time dozens of rockets were launched fromGaza into Israel. When it became clear that Hamas would not acceptthe proposal, Israel resumed bombing military targets in Gaza. 

According to Hamas in a statement: 

To avoid confusion and to be clear with our people,al-Qassam Brigades confirm that we haven’t been contacted by anyofficial or unofficial entities about terms of this allegedinitiative.

If what has been circulated is true, this initiative meanskneeling and submissiveness and so we completely refuse it and tous, it’s not worth the ink used in writing it.

This is not surprising. As we wrote yesterday, Hamas has beenhumiliated by the fact that they’ve launched hundreds of rockets intoIsraeli territory and accomplished almost nothing, mainly thanks toIsrael’s sophisticated Iron Dome anti-missile system. For the Hamasleadership to agree to a cease-fire now would probably cause violencebetween the militant factions within Gaza itself, as the more extremefactions turn against Hamas leadership for allowing itself to befurther humiliated. 

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement: 

We accepted the Egyptian proposal in order to presentan opportunity for Gaza to be disarmed of its missiles, rockets,and tunnels through political means, but if Hamas does not acceptthis proposed cease-fire – and this is how it appears at present –Israel will have full international legitimacy for an expandedmilitary operation to return the necessary quiet.

Hamas is infuriated by this situation because it appears that theentire cease-fire proposal was a setup to further humiliate Hamas,while giving Israel legitimacy to escalate its missile attacks onthe military targets in Gaza. 

According Michael Oren, Israel’s former ambassador toWashington: 

If Hamas rejects the very public diplomatic offerhere, then if the fighting renews, Israel can then pursue itsmilitary goals with a tremendous amount of internationallegitimacy behind it – something that was lacking prior to theoutbreak of the hostilities.

However, along with this legitimacy comes a great deal moretension between the two sides, with substantially morefury on the Hamas side and substantially more nationalismon the Israeli side. 

Appearing on the BBC on Tuesday, Richard Haass, president of theCouncil on Foreign Relations, said that the probability of an Israeliground invasion into Gaza has increased substantially in the last 24hours, and that the current conflict is “dangerously different” fromthe conflicts that occurred in 2012 and 2008: 

It is. What’s worrying me now is not simply that youhave Hamas against the Israelis, but there’s a tribal element,because of the three Israelis who were killed, then the onePalestinian in the revenge killing. So you now have this takingplace at multiple levels and it’s not just organized violence,it’s unorganized violence, and the two are potentially trulydangerous.

Generational Dynamics predicts that the Arabs and the Jews are headedfor a war characterized by exactly this kind of unorganized “tribal”violence. It may happen this time, or in two years, or in five years,but it’s coming, and the outcome will almost certainly not be favorable to Israel. International Middle East Media Center (Gaza) and Jewish Telegraphic Agency and CS Monitor

Turkey’s prime minister Erdogan makes vitriolic attack on Israel

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday accused Israel of

With utter disregard for international law, Israelcontinues to terrorize the region, and no country but us istelling it to stop. It has sprayed bullets and caused deaths, asit does every Ramadan.

No tyranny is everlasting; sooner or later every tyrant has to paythe price… This tyranny will not remain unaccountedfor.

Erdogan also criticized an Israeli member of parliament, Ayelet Shakedof the ultra-nationalist Jewish Home party, for saying that “mothersof the martyrs” should also be killed. “What is the differencebetween this mentality and Hitler’s?” asked Erdogan. Zaman (Ankara)

KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Israel, Gaza, Hamas, Benjamin Netanyahu,Michael Oren, Richard Haass, Turkey, Recep Tayyip ErdoganAyelet Shaked, Jewish Home party 

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