There have been many attempts before and, frankly, the odds are stacked against this latest ceasefire agreement.
As a ceasefire in Gaza starts to take hold today, hopefully, the words of Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel should give us all pause for contemplation: “Mankind must remember that peace is not God’s gift to his creatures; peace is our gift to each other.”
US President Donald Trump, for whatever his myriad faults – and his own unshakeable belief that he himself is God’s gift to humanity – will deserve the Nobel Peace Prize if the peace in Gaza allows the devastated territory to be left alone to rebuild.
Whether his influence over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – and that of some Middle East nations over Hamas – will persuade Jew and Muslim to give each other the gift of peace remains to be seen.
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There have been many attempts before that have stuttered and failed and, frankly, the odds are stacked against this latest ceasefire agreement.
Will the Israelis be able to set aside their anger at the Hamas terrorism of 7 October, 2023, even if their hostages are returned?
Will the Palestinians ever recover from the ethnic cleansing – or genocide – they have been subjected to? People like Wiesel lived the phrase “never again” about the Holocaust.
May that be applied equally to the Gazan holocaust.
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