Time's Up for the Warmongers and Dreamers of Settlements: Seal the Deal Now - Haaretz Editorial - Haaretz.com
According to reports on Thursday night, U.S. President Donald Trump was expected to announce a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip within the next few days. Despite denials by Israel and Hamas, we can only hope the cease-fire is near.
Even before these reports, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, had said his country soon plans to submit a new proposal for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. An Israeli source said the outline consists of a proposal to release 10 living hostages and 18 deceased hostages in two phases within a week in return for a 60-day cease-fire.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told families of the hostages that Israel had agreed to Witkoff's plan. It's good he said that. We can only hope that the agreement is real and not the kind that turns out to be another of his cynical calculations ending in bitter disappointment.
We must also hope that any interim proposal that is accepted will lead toward a comprehensive plan that includes the release of all the hostages in exchange for an end to the war, the freeing of Palestinian prisoners and finally the withdrawal of IDF forces from the Gaza Strip.
These must be Israel's supreme goals, above all others, so it must hurry, reach agreements and act to implement them swiftly.
Time is rapidly running out for the 58 hostages, 20 of them living, and for the hundreds of thousands of displaced, starving, disabled and orphaned people in Gaza. This is the time for great, courageous decisions.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich quickly pledged that he "wouldn't allow such a thing to happen," and the danger to the safety of Netanyahu's coalition is clear. But Israel can no longer proceed under the extortion of warmongers on the right and advocates of killing and transfer.
Special Envoys Witkoff and Boehler meeting family members of Israeli hostages held by Hamas, last week.Credit: David Azagury, U.S. Embassy Jerusalem
Most Israelis, most of the world and history, too, will not forgive Netanyahu if he continues to abandon the hostages and Gaza Strip residents to a brutal fate. The world is already showing signs of taking action against Israel. After 20 months, all excuses have run out. Groundless, imaginary goals should no longer be at stake now. Instead, Israel must embark on a supremely important rescue mission: saving all the hostages and stopping the suffering and killing in Gaza.
We must hope that what Netanyahu told the hostage families will meet the reality test. We must also hope that Israel's approval will be met with agreement by Hamas. The time has arrived to put an end to the cycle of violence and bloodshed of the past year and a half.
Israel must adopt Witkoff's proposal without delay, at any cost, due to the urgency of the hour. The time of the warmongers and dreamers of distorted visions of settlements and occupation in Gaza is up, and the time of Gaza's suffering must also end. Agreement now; yesterday, today, not tomorrow.
The above article is Haaretz's lead editorial, as published in the Hebrew and English newspapers in Israel.