Abdullah Al-Arian, associate professor of history at Georgetown University in Qatar, spoke with Al Jazeera about the status of the Gaza ceasefire deal, which is on shaky ground after Hamas suspended the scheduled release of captives, citing Israeli ceasefire violations.
While the deal “can still be salvaged if Israel adheres to its commitments”, Al-Arian questioned whether there is the “political will” by the international community to hold it to account.
“There have been so many different violations,” said Al-Arian — from the killings of Palestinians to the blocking of humanitarian aid and equipment needed for rescue and recovery efforts.
“Up to 110 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed since the beginning of the ceasefire, which completely negates even the concept of a ceasefire,” he added.
Hamas, he said, likely calculated that one “can only continue to hold up [one’s] end of an agreement for so long” while the promised conditions are not met.