Long-Overdue Ceasefire: A Bitter Relief After Netanyahu’s Obstruction – CIP CEO, Nancy Okail
In response to reports that a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release framework has been agreed between Israel and Hamas, the Center for International Policy’s President & CEO Nancy Okail issued the following statement from Jerusalem:
“It is a bitter relief that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has finally accepted a long-overdue phased Gaza ceasefire and hostage release framework that has been on the table and endorsed by the rest of the world for more than half a year. It is an outrage that he obstructed and delayed this agreement, first characterized by President Joe Biden as an Israeli proposal, while thousands of Palestinian civilians died and Israeli hostages held since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks were killed or remained in captivity.
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“The fact that Netanyahu is finally accepting the deal mere days before his favored candidate in the recent U.S. presidential election will return to the Oval Office is confirmation of what Israeli, Arab and even some U.S. officials involved in negotiations have been saying for months – that Netanyahu obstructed and delayed a ceasefire and hostage release to further his own personal political interests. Netanyahu’s acquiescence to Donald Trump’s insistence that a ceasefire be in place when he takes office next week ironically shows how effective actual pressure can be in changing Israeli government behavior.
“It will forever be part of the legacy of President Biden and his top foreign policy advisors that they not only provided diplomatic cover for and enabled Netanyahu’s prolonging of this horrific war, but continued to arm Israeli atrocities against civilians in Gaza in clear violation of international and U.S. law. Thanks largely to his role in sustaining the carnage in Gaza, Biden hands over to Trump a foreign policy landscape in which international norms and U.S. credibility have been further eroded rather than strengthened.
“All parties must now adhere to the terms of this agreement, which only provides for a temporary ceasefire that requires further negotiations to extend, and work in good faith to ensure it is made permanent to ensure a sustainable cessation of hostilities. A massive humanitarian relief effort and steps to provide for administration and reconstruction of the territory must also begin in earnest with the backing of generous international assistance, including from the United States. All parties must also work to prevent deadly escalation from resuming elsewhere in the region, including between Israel and Iran.”
JERUSALEM (Jan. 15)
Based in Washington, DC, the Center for International Policy (CIP) is a progressive, independent nonprofit center for research, education, and advocacy working to advance a more peaceful, just, and sustainable U.S. approach to foreign policy.
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