Preparations are underway for Palestinian-Palestinian dialogues under Chinese mediation, scheduled to begin on the 20th of this month. These talks will start with a meeting between the “Hamas” and “Fatah” movements, followed by a gathering of all Palestinian factions the next day. It seems that Chinese pressure has delivered, leading to the scheduling of these dialogues after they were postponed last month. The delay was likely due to disagreements over the final statement proposed by China. It appears that the factions have agreed to resume dialogue, despite a lack of encouraging factors for an agreement due to differing views between “Hamas” and “Fatah” on the future of Gaza and the nature of the upcoming governance in the Strip. The concerned factions do not want to lose China due to internal disputes.
Despite disagreements over what the day after the war in Gaza should look like, the current situation in the Strip requires deep, different thinking and significant flexibility in dealing with the disagreements, which are primarily driven by partisan interests rather than national ones. Israeli crimes continue unabated, with daily killings and targeting of all infrastructure. This is in addition to the pressing humanitarian needs that are heavily burdening the citizens, who are being starved and displaced at an unprecedented scale in modern times. Moreover, the intense military pressure on Hamas and other fighting factions in Gaza adds to the strain. The recent attack on Mawasi, resulting in the death of the Khan Younis Brigade commander in the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Rafeh Salama, and the unconfirmed reports of the elimination of Mohammed Deif, the Qassam’s general commander, along with several military cadres, are all factors that may influence Hamas’s stance on Gaza’s future. It is certain that Hamas showed great flexibility in continuing negotiations over the prisoner exchange deal despite the barbaric attack on Mawasi, and it is now required to show the same internal flexibility.
These conditions may also affect the leadership’s stance on dialogue and agreement with Hamas, shifting it from negative to positive despite the pressures preventing national reconciliation and a comprehensive national agreement. The internal Palestinian situation is subject to significant regional and international interventions that touch on all details. There is no doubt that the future of the entire region after the genocide in Gaza is tied to what happens in the Strip the day after the war. This topic is a major concern for the international community and is widely discussed in decision-making circles worldwide. Although Israel enjoys western support and holds a highly protected status because the United States provides Tel Aviv with all possible and unrestricted support, even at the level of killings and genocide carried out by Israel with American weapons.
Washington continues to send envoys one after another, the latest being Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, who visited the UAE, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Palestine, and Italy during her tour. Her mission was to reach an agreement on prisoner exchange and post-war arrangements in Gaza. However, it does not seem that American efforts will succeed this time differently than previous attempts as long as Washington does not apply real pressure on Tel Aviv, making the Israeli government understand that sticking to its positions will cost it dearly. Regional and international capitals are also moving, but so far, to no avail.
We are not taking the matter seriously and are not doing the right thing to spare our people further suffering. Our factions and great leaders are content with analyzing the situation and lamenting what is happening, and at best, they repeat appeals and calls for international parties to intervene to end this destructive war. However, there is no significant effort at the level of their national duties toward our people, who are being slaughtered around the clock. It is as if this war is taking place in a distant area with no connection to us.
Now, there is an opportunity to rethink our reality and search for real mechanisms to reach a comprehensive national agreement that paves the way for addressing the tragedies of our people and eliminating the indifference that has shocked us all in the behavior of all leaderships. Can we seize the opportunity of dialogue in China, this friendly and great country, to do what our collective conscience and national interest dictate, or will we treat the dialogues in China as just another in a long line of many that have produced some detailed agreements that never saw the light? If that happens, our people’s suffering will double, the opportunity for a settlement may be lost forever, and we will return to lament our new catastrophe, for which history will not forgive us.
Author: Ashraf Ajram