After 129 days of war against Hamas, the Israelis woke up this Monday with the news of a rescue operation in the Gaza Strip, in which elite forces of the army, the Security Service and the Police recovered two of the kidnapped people alive that were in the hands of Hamas in the Palestinian enclave.
These are the Argentine Israelis Luis Har (70 years old) and Fernando Marman (60), kidnapped on October 7 from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak. Fernando's two sisters, Gabriela Leimberg and Clara Marman, the latter Luis's partner; as well as Mia, Gabriela's daughter, were taken to Gaza last October, and returned to Israel in November within the framework of the ceasefire reached between the parties.
The operation was carried out in the Shabura refugee camp in Rafah, one of the most densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip, where such an action poses a special challenge.
Hamas reported that there were more than one hundred dead as a result of the Israeli fire that accompanied the rescue. Although the Israeli security forces assure that they are, for the most part, armed men from Hamas.
(Also read: United States and the ICC, concerned about a possible Israeli offensive against Rafah in Gaza)
The news has raised questions about whether the rescue operation will have any impact on the continuation of the war, just as Israel accelerates its attacks on Rafah as a precursor to a possible imminent ground offensive in the city, the only point where Israeli troops have not yet entered by land.
And the rescue of Marman and Har convinced Israel of something that was already thought: that There are kidnapped people in Rafah and that many were probably transferred there as Israel advanced in other regions. Israeli forces also say they have information that Hamas leaders are hiding in Rafah.
In the background there are two major discussions about the future of the war: one, at the internal Israeli level, between those who maintain that only greater military pressure will make it possible to recover the kidnapped people, and those who maintain that it is imperative to reach an agreement with Hamas to achieve the return of the hostages even if the “price” to pay is high.
The other discussion is about the advance of the war towards Rafah due to the dangers of entering that area, especially for the Palestinian civilian population. More than a million Palestinians take refuge in Rafah, whom Israel urged to evacuate from the north when the central combats of the war were concentrated there.
The international community is pressing hard to stop the possible offensive in Rafah. Egypt, for example, is putting special pressure fearing that, trying to flee the war, a multitude of Palestinians will be forced to evacuate to Egyptian territory.
“The solution would be to pressure Hamas to surrender and lay down its weapons,” said Arab affairs analyst for the Israeli channel N12 Ehud Yaari to those who fear what could happen if Israel enters Rafah.
(You may be interested: Israel reaffirms that it will direct its offensive towards Rafah, despite international pressure)
There can be no absolute victory over Hamas without destroying the four armed Hamas battalions in Rafah
Judging by official statements, The operation in Rafah is unavoidable, and the question is not if there will be but when it will happen.
“There can be no absolute victory over Hamas without destroying the four armed Hamas battalions in Rafah,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday. “It's just a matter of time,” Minister Benny Gantz clarified this Monday.
War or agreement? Is there a dichotomy between the two or do they complement each other? Can we try to reach an agreement with Hamas to recover the kidnapped people while it is being attacked?: These are some of the questions that haunt Israeli society today.
According to the response that Hamas sent days ago to the Israeli proposal for a ceasefire, the room for maneuver is complex because the Islamist group's central condition for reaching an agreement is that Israel commits to definitively ending the war, with American guarantees, and to withdraw from the Gaza Strip.
Numerous families of kidnapped people have also been demonstrating for months remembering that each day that passes is a danger and that “an agreement must be signed” that allows the hostages to return, regardless of what has to be given.
A few days ago, 16-year-old Hadas Calderón, who was kidnapped for more than 50 days, said it sobbing. Calderón returned in November and is still waiting for the return of Ofer, his father. She and many more are part of the 'Forum of Relatives of Abductees'.
(Also: Israeli Prime Minister promises 'safe passage' for civilians before assault on Rafah)
But there are those who think differently from the 'Forum of Relatives of Abductees', as is the case of Tzvika Mor, founder of the smallest Forum “Tikvá”, which means “hope”. Also He wants to recover his son Eitan, kidnapped on October 7 from the Nova music festival, but he considers that the path must be different.
Tzvika Mor urged citizens to participate in a mass event last Thursday night in front of the government offices in Jerusalem, billed as “the victory ceremony.” The message: emphasize that the war against Hamas must continue until the Islamist organization is defeated and disarmed.
(You can read: The 6-year-old girl who died in Gaza begging for help for hours under attack by Israel)
The “reservists protest” group and other actors in Israeli public opinion also participated with the same message, including parents of fallen soldiers who maintain that the death of their children cannot have been in vain and that if the war is stopped sooner to collapse Hamas, it will be a tragedy.
In the midst of these discussions, this Tuesday the Qatari and Egyptian mediators, the director of the CIA and perhaps, if Israel decides to attend, the heads of Israeli Security, will meet in Cairo to evaluate the possibilities of an agreement. While Israel hopes that the rescue operation in Rafah has shown Hamas that it will not be safe anywhere and that it is in its best interest to negotiate.
JANA BERIS
FOR THE TIME
JERUSALEM
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