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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">Step Closer to Victory in Gaza: Burns’ ‘Expansive Deal’ Could Only Mean One Thing</h1>November 28, 2023</div>
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<img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Netanyahu_Abu-Obeida_PC.png" alt="" title="Netanyahu_Abu Obeida_PC" class="gmail-moz-reader-block-img" width="391" height="262" style="margin-right: 25px;">
While Hamas' position did not change, the Israeli position is that of confusion. (Image: Palestine Chronicle)
<p><strong>By <a href="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/writers/ramzy-baroud-romana-rubeo" title="Display all articles for Ramzy Baroud & Romana Rubeo">Ramzy Baroud & Romana Rubeo</a></strong></p>
<blockquote>
<h3>Hamas’ position has not changed. The same cannot be said about
Israel. The Israeli position, whether political or military, is that of
confusion and contradictions.</h3>
</blockquote>
<p><span>As soon as Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the
Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas, learned that Israel had violated
the conditions of the</span> <span>truce on Tuesday, November 28, as soon as it responded.</span></p>
<p><span>According to the Israeli army, Hamas has </span><a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israeli-army-says-several-soldiers-lightly-injured-in-exchange-of-fire-in-gaza/3067159"><span>detonated</span></a><span> three explosive devices, near Israeli soldiers in “different locations of northern Gaza”, wounding several. </span></p>
<p><span>Again, the message of Hamas is that the movement has not agreed
to the truce from a position of weakness, and is willing to resume the
fighting as soon as it is necessary to do so. </span></p>
<p><span>Hamas’ position has not changed. Indeed, it remains consistent
with its positions from the start of the war: We are ready to exchange
all of our captives, for all Palestinians held in Israel; We will fight
until the last Israeli soldier leaves Gaza; and our ultimate aim is a
political settlement, which includes ending the siege on the Strip,
respecting holy sites in Jerusalem, and a political settlement that ends
illegal Israeli colonization of the West Bank, and a fully independent
Palestinian state.</span></p>
<p><span>The same cannot be said about Israel. The Israeli position,
whether political or military, is that of confusion and contradictions.
And also, tough talk. </span></p>
<p><span>This was on full display on Tuesday, November 28 in Gaza, when
the Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz visited south Israel.</span></p>
<p><span>“</span><span>After the cease-fire, the war will resume,” he
said, emphasizing that “the entire War Cabinet is united in this
position. There is no other option.”</span></p>
<blockquote><p><span>“We are preparing for the next stages of the war,
and for expanding the maneuver in the Gaza Strip as a whole. It will not
be a city of refuge for terrorists and Hamas leaders.”</span></p></blockquote>
<p><span>Hamas understands that Gantz’s comments are intended mostly for
local consumption. In fact, this is precisely how top Hamas official
Osama Hamdan described Israel’s declaration that it was ready to resume
the war.</span></p>
<p><span>For his part, Hamdan said that the Israeli army is yet to set
foot on nearly 80 percent of the land of Gaza and that such a mission is
impossible anyway. </span></p>
<p><span>The Hamas official based his statement on the fact that Israel
has fought a total of 48 days of war, including 28 days of ground
invasion, without advancing beyond empty areas in the north and east,
and without seriously engaging with Palestinian fighters in the most
populated areas in northern Gaza.</span></p>
<p><span>If Israel has any achievement worth mentioning, it is the fact
that it has penetrated the main road, spilling north Gaza from the
south. But even then, this operational military move remains
indefensible. This is precisely why various Israeli units were forced to
retreat or reposition themselves in the last hours before the first day
of ceasefire, on November 24. </span></p>
<p><span>Then, there is the subject of Israeli casualties. Slowly, the
Israeli military is releasing information about the number of soldiers
killed and wounded in Gaza. </span><span><br>
</span><span><br>
</span><span>Today, for example, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz </span><a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/1-000-israeli-soldiers-officers-injured-since-outbreak-of-war-on-gaza-on-oct-7/3067008#:~:text=Figure%20of%20injured%20includes%20over,critical%20condition%2C%20says%20Haaretz%20daily&text=Around%201%2C000%20Israeli%20soldiers%20and,Israeli%20media%20reported%20on%20Tuesday."><span>cited</span></a><span>
the Israeli army as saying that over 1,000 Israeli soldiers were
wounded in the ground fighting in Gaza, out of which 202 are critically
wounded. </span></p>
<p><span>The number has to be higher, and not just because of
Al-Qassam’s documented evidence of hundreds of Israeli tanks and other
military vehicles being hit or blown up.</span></p>
<p><span>On November 23, the Israeli Disabled Veterans Organization </span><a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/1-600-israeli-soldiers-left-disabled-by-gaza-conflict/3062935#:~:text=Around%201%2C600%20Israeli%20soldiers%20have,Veterans%20Organization%2C%20told%20Army%20Radio."><span>said</span></a><span>
that 1,600 Israeli soldiers have been permanently disabled as a result
of the war, in addition to thousands more who are suffering from post
traumatic stress disorder.</span></p>
<p><span>Permanent disability could only mean one out of three things: a serious injury, a debilitating injury, or both. </span></p>
<p><span>All this in mind, it is hard to fathom Israel’s enthusiasm to return to the battlefield with gusto, as promised by Gantz. </span></p>
<p><span>The battlefield is once again proving to be the ultimate test,
according to which victory and defeat are being defined, on both sides
of this deadly struggle. </span></p>
<p><span>While Palestinians know fully what they are fighting for, the
Israelis seem to be motivated by revenge, which must have, to some
extent, been satisfied, considering that they have killed well over
15,000 mostly innocent civilians. (The number will grow by several
thousands due to the missing Palestinians under rubble.) </span></p>
<p><span>Moreover, military victories only count if they are joined by a
political and strategic victory. Out of these three potential
victories, Israel has, so far, achieved nil. </span></p>
<p><span>And this is why CIA Chief William Burns is currently in Doha, Qatar, to </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/11/28/cia-william-burns-israel-hamas-hostages/"><span>talk </span></a><span>about a “more expansive deal”. </span></p>
<p><span>“Expansive deal” could only mean a comprehensive prisoner swap
and ending the Israeli war on Gaza, simply because Hamas would not
agree to releasing all Israelis held in Gaza without assurances that the
war will be over. </span></p>
<p><span>But if that takes place, only one interpretation is possible: Palestinians have won, Israel has lost. </span></p>
<p><span>And this is why US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is planning yet another visit to the Middle East. </span></p>
<p><span>Unlike Burns, Blinken wants to talk politics, specifically how
to manage the final chapter in the Israeli war to help Tel Aviv save
face.</span></p>
<p><span>Sure, he will talk about what to do with Gaza once Hamas is
defeated, but he should know that that scenario is no longer applicable,
and that the chances of it taking place are as unlikely as Israel
winning this war. </span></p>
<p><span>Only time will tell how Blinken and his friends in Washington
and Tel Aviv will try to brand, or perhaps rebrand, the Israeli war on
Gaza, to justify its failure to achieve any of its initially declared
objectives. </span></p>
<p><span>For the Palestinian Resistance in the destroyed Gaza Strip,
however, they feel that they are one step closer to clinching the first
actual military victory over Israel in a so-called conflict that has
extended for over 75 years.</span></p>
<p><span>Considering the reality on the ground at the moment, the Palestinian assessment seems to be fully justified.</span></p>
<p><i><span>– Dr. Ramzy Baroud is a journalist, author and the Editor of
The Palestine Chronicle. He is the author of six books. His latest
book, co-edited with Ilan Pappé, is ‘</span></i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Our-Vision-Liberation-Palestinian-Intellectuals/dp/1949762440"><i><span>Our Vision for Liberation</span></i></a><i><span>:
Engaged Palestinian Leaders and Intellectuals Speak Out’. His other
books include ‘My Father was a Freedom Fighter’ and ‘The Last Earth’.
Baroud is a Non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Islam
and Global Affairs (CIGA). His website is </span></i><a href="http://www.ramzybaroud.net/"><i><span>www.ramzybaroud.net</span></i></a></p>
<p><i><span>– Romana Rubeo is an Italian writer and the managing editor
of The Palestine Chronicle. Her articles appeared in many online
newspapers and academic journals. She holds a Master’s Degree in Foreign
Languages and Literature and specializes in audio-visual and journalism
translation.</span></i></p>
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