Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told Al Arabiya News on Monday that “we trust Trump” to deliver peace in Gaza and stabilize the Middle East.
Qassem’s praise for Trump’s peacemaking skills was something of a backhanded insult to Israel, as he accused the Israelis of violating the ceasefire negotiated by President Donald Trump and allegedly killing more than 420 people since the ceasefire began, most of them “children, women, and the elderly.”
Qassem said his jihadist terror organization remains confident that Trump can “achieve peace in Gaza and the wider region,” and the United States is the only power that is “capable of compelling Israel to fully implement agreements,” as Al Arabiya rendered his remarks.
Last week, Qassem accused Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz of committing “a clear violation of the ceasefire agreement” by allegedly floating the idea of establishing new Israeli settlements in Gaza.
Qassem said Katz’s idea “completely goes against” Trump’s peace plan. Katz later issued a statement that said his comments were misinterpreted and the Israeli government “has no intention of establishing settlements in the Gaza Strip.”
Hamas, meanwhile, has more clearly violated the ceasefire agreement by reneging on its explicit commitment to disarm and its promise to withdraw from strategic territory in Gaza. Hamas ally Hezbollah in Lebanon is also refusing to disarm, which goes against agreements in its own ceasefire deal, and Israel has indicated it is prepared to use force to disarm both groups if necessary.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will reportedly tell President Trump during their meeting in Florida on Monday that moving forward with the second phase of the Gaza peace plan would be unwise if Hamas does not disarm and relinquish its grip on Gaza.
“Trump wants to be remembered as the one who saved the hostages, but he must be careful not to be etched into history as the one who preserved Hamas in power in Gaza,” senior Israeli officials told i24 News on Friday.
Israel’s Ynet News worried on Friday that Trump could become too focused on the Gaza ceasefire as a “personal achievement,” and thus too willing to overlook Hamas violations to keep the deal alive. Hamas spokesman Qassem’s praise for Trump as the ultimate peacemaker seemed calculated to exploit such sentiments.
Professor Kobi Michael, a senior researcher for the Institute for National Security Studies, said on Sunday that Hamas appears to be abusing the Gaza peace plan in the same way it has every previous ceasefire – by using it as an opportunity to rearm, recruit new fighters, and prepare for its next attack.
“Everything that is happening will continue happening as long as Hamas continues to effectively control the western part of the Gaza Strip. Generally speaking, Hamas now has full freedom of movement,” Michael told Fox News Digital, which cited reports that Hamas is busy rebuilding its terrorist infrastructure, including the infamous tunnels beneath Gaza’s cities.
The Jerusalem Post reported on Monday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is preparing a review of how Hamas has survived, regrouped, and replenished its arsenal after each Israeli invasion of Gaza.
The review will examine “why and how Hamas made a comeback” within a few months in areas that were “defined as operationally clear of Hamas” by the IDF, and will place similar scrutiny upon the IDF’s battles with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
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