Middle East crisis — explained NPR npr.org by Aya Batrawy August 16, 2024 Abu Bakr Bashir contributed reporting from London
DOHA, Qatar — A Hamas leader says they will give up governing Gaza but won’t lay down arms
Extracts:
Palestinian unity government
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists on continuing the war in Gaza until Hamas’ military and governing abilities are eliminated Netanyahu has also vowed to block the establishment of a Palestinian state, saying it would harm Israeli security
Analysts say Hamas has been severely degraded from Israel’s punishing military campaign Israel says it has dismantled nearly all of the group’s battalions in Gaza But Naim says the group cannot be eradicated. He says Hamas will not lay down arms — something Netanyahu has insisted must happen
“Why not ask the other party to be this disarmed at the same level?” Naim says, referring to Israel. “We will be disarmed if you can guarantee that we will not be attacked”
Experts say it will take years to rebuild Gaza and clear the munitions left behind by the war. Nearly all of Gaza’s roughly 2 million residents are now displaced from their homes and most of the Gaza Strip’s buildings, including schools and hospitals, have been damaged, according to the UN
In order to achieve a cease-fire deal that leads to international funds to rebuild Gaza, Hamas understands it must make concessions. “We are not willing to come back to govern the Gaza Strip” Naim says though he doesn’t say for how long
“What we are calling for is a Palestinian unity government, formed from technocrats who are not affiliated to any faction but supported from all factions … to run the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank” he says
Palestinian rivals Hamas and Fatah which has a bigger presence in the West Bank, struck a deal recently, with China as a broker, that calls for the creation of a unity government. It’s unclear when or if this will happen
The two factions fought one another for control of Gaza in 2007 leading to Hamas’ takeover of the territory and an Israeli-led blockade strictly controlling movement in and out of the enclave
