Yahya Sinwar, then the head of Hamas in Gaza, during an inauguration ceremony of a mosque in Rafah, in the southern part of the enclave, on Feb. 24, 2017. (Credit: Said Khatib/AFP)
Several times in recent months, the prospect of a cease-fire agreement in the Gaza Strip has brought hope. Each time, Israel and Hamas ultimately stood firm in their positions. As a sign of the deadlock in the talks, the Qatari Prime Minister and main mediator of the negotiations, Mohammad bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, stated on Wednesday that there had been no conversation or commitment from the parties in the past three or four weeks with a view to achieving a cease-fire agreement in the Palestinian enclave. On Oct. 17, the confirmation of the death of Yahya Sinwar in Gaza nevertheless led to a flurry of Western statements congratulating the elimination of the mastermind of Oct. 7, and calling to take the opportunity to achieve a cease-fire. Chief among them was that of the American administration. Could we now break the deadlock? One less...
Several times in recent months, the prospect of a cease-fire agreement in the Gaza Strip has brought hope. Each time, Israel and Hamas ultimately stood firm in their positions. As a sign of the deadlock in the talks, the Qatari Prime Minister and main mediator of the negotiations, Mohammad bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, stated on Wednesday that there had been no conversation or commitment from the parties in the past three or four weeks with a view to achieving a cease-fire agreement in the Palestinian enclave. On Oct. 17, the confirmation of the death of Yahya Sinwar in Gaza nevertheless led to a flurry of Western statements congratulating the elimination of the mastermind of Oct. 7, and calling to take the opportunity to achieve a cease-fire. Chief among them was that of the American administration. Could we now break the deadlock? One...