Despite hurdles, inertia could keep Gaza ceasefire, hostage deal going

Will the ceasefire be extended?

Regional media appear to think the same way. Al-Ain media in the UAE has said that despite Israel’s demands to remain in the Rafah corridor and other issues, the ceasefire is likely to be extended. The report explores several scenarios, such as Hamas withdrawing from the deal or the US finding a way to broker a deal that gets Israel to leave the Rafah area. However, the report seems optimistic that the first phase of the deal will be extended. This is what happened in Lebanon as well, as the 60-day ceasefire was extended.

The same Al-Ain media is also focused on Israel’s operations in the West Bank, where the IDF is changing the equation. The IDF is remaining in some Palestinian areas, and tanks have been used for the first time in two decades. This is important because the reports believe Israel is now looking to a “day after” scenario in the northern West Bank. The fact that this has gone smoothly for Israel illustrates that countries in the region may now accept these increased Israeli operations.

The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other Gulf countries are increasingly important in some of this focus on what happens next. Although so far, they do not seek a larger role in Gaza or the West Bank, their position and how they view these issues are important. For instance, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun recently expressed hope that “the upcoming extraordinary Arab Summit, scheduled to be held next week in Cairo, would yield a unified Arab position to address the region’s current challenges, especially since it targets the joint interests of the brotherly Arab countries.”

He was meeting Wednesday with Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al-Busaidi, who was accompanied by a diplomatic delegation to Beirut. Aoun said that “amid the developments in southern Lebanon, Syria and Palestine, the challenges are significant and ongoing and require a unified Arab stance to face them.”

Meanwhile Egypt has rejected playing a larger role in Gaza. This was in response to Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid’s suggestion that Egypt could run Gaza. “Any notions or proposals that circumvent the constants of the Egyptian and Arab stance (on Gaza)… are rejected and unacceptable,” the official MENA news agency in Egypt quoted foreign ministry spokesman Tamim Khallaf as saying, Arab News noted.