Osama Al-Sharif
Since Israel launched its assault on Gaza almost three months ago, the US, and some Israeli officials and media commentators have been talking about the day-after scenario, meaning what happens when the guns fall silent and the fog of war is dispelled. Most scenarios have assumed that Israel would be able to achieve its two declared objectives – uprooting Hamas from Gaza and freeing Israeli captives being held there.
But now, after more than 80 days of Israeli bombing and shelling, which even CNN admits is “indiscriminate,” and with more than 60 percent of the Gaza Strip’s buildings destroyed, Israel is far from achieving either goal. The bombing of Gaza has been described as the most vicious since the Vietnam War. More than 20,000 Gazans have been killed, 70 percent of them women and children. More than 50,000 have been injured. Aid convoys passing through the Rafah crossing every day are insufficient, according to the UN, which also says that Palestinians in Gaza now face disease and famine. Many thousands will die because of the cold, and lack of medicine, food, and clean water.
Still, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that Israel will continue to fight until victory is reached – now a goal that appears elusive, if not impossible. There are mounting calls in Israel for his dismissal, while support for the war among Israelis is dwindling by the day. Hamas and its allies continue to rain rockets on Israeli towns and cities, while inflicting a heavy toll on the invading army. Support for Gaza and Palestine has reached record levels around the world, aside from the obstinate position of the US government, with most now supporting calls for a permanent ceasefire. Much has changed in recent weeks. Most Western mainstream media outlets are now critical of Israel’s handling of the war, and an increasing number of observers believe Israel is fighting a losing battle, while also pointing to the possibility that it is committing war crimes. On social media, young people are lining up to condemn the war and voice solidarity with the Palestinians.
Despite all this, Netanyahu and his far-right coalition partners want the conflict to continue at any price. The Israeli leader is refusing to listen to relatives of the hostages, who want a deal that will end the war and secure the safe return of their loved ones. The Biden administration is losing public support at home, with almost half of the American people, if not more, wanting a lasting ceasefire. The US is becoming isolated even among its allies, most of whom disagree with giving Israel a green light to operate indiscriminately in Gaza. But regarding the “day after,” Netanyahu and the US do not see eye-to-eye. The Israeli prime minister, now fighting for his political life, appears to want extended Israel security control of Gaza, which means open-ended occupation. However, Biden and even most Israelis disagree.
An Egyptian proposal to secure a long-term hiatus in return for freeing the captives, while opening the path for joint Hamas-Palestinian Authority control of Gaza, but without specifying details of an Israeli withdrawal, has reportedly been rejected by the Hamas military wing. It is no secret that a halt to the conflict now would represent a resounding defeat for Israel, leading to a collapse of the war government, and a reckoning for Netanyahu. But most omit two factors from possible solutions and scenarios. The first is that Palestinians in Gaza want an immediate end to the war because every day means hell for those who are simply lucky to survive. Washington’s blind support for Israel means that every minute, every hour and every day, more Palestinian civilians are killed. That cannot be tolerated by the international community any longer.
The second issue is not who will rule Gaza once the bombing stops, but how will the international community step in to save millions who are displaced and living in catastrophic conditions. Israel must not be allowed to decide how many aid trucks are allowed to pass through Rafah and other crossings when the lives of millions are at stake. The world must make recompense for its failure to uphold international humanitarian law and save many thousands of innocent lives because the US and Israel believed that so-called collateral damage was acceptable in this case.
But what is also important and urgent is that an independent investigation of what happened on Oct. 7 and afterward be carried out and pronouncements made. It was ironic that Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, accepted an invitation to meet the Israeli families who were targets of the Hamas attack, yet would not visit the Gaza Strip or make a strong statement on allegations of Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing leveled against Israel.
The ICC’s credibility is now in question, as Khan and the court remain silent on what Israel is carrying out in Gaza. By last count, about 100 journalists and their families have been killed by Israel. Doctors, medics, university professors, activists, poets, artists, UN workers, and thousands of children have been killed. Hospitals, universities, schools, mosques, churches, civic centers, and residential buildings have been demolished. There are reports of mass executions of civilians. If Khan is unable to act, then he should resign. Otherwise, he is not fit to hold office, and is discrediting the ICC and its purpose. There have been dozens of cases filed at the ICC concerning the killing of journalists, children, and crimes by Israeli officers and the complicity of high-profile political figures in war crimes. Khan cannot ignore these cases, all of which name Israel as the main culprit.
The “day after” for Gaza is not only about who will rule the besieged and now leveled strip of land where 2.1 million Palestinians, 70 percent of whom were already displaced or refugees, used to live. Netanyahu, his lieutenants, and his generals are war criminals. They should be investigated and tried. Those who supported this war must also be named and charged. In a perfect world, this would be the right thing to do. But ours is not an ideal world, and the war on Gaza should set in motion a process to create a world order where warmongers and killers of babies become an example, so that no repeat of the carnage in Gaza can become possible ever again.
Arab News
