The deaths of dozens of Palestinian civilians on Thursday, as food and humanitarian aid were being distributed in the northern Gaza Strip, requires a thorough and independent investigation to determine whether they were killed by the Israel Defense Forces, as the Palestinians claim, or trampled to death as they raced toward the aid trucks, as the IDF spokesman claims.
But even before the details of what happened have been fully clarified, these unnecessary deaths highlight the anarchy that Israel’s partial occupation of Gaza has created, in the absence of any civilian authority that would see to the residents’ needs and enable them to return to their destroyed towns and villages. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to outline any practical plan for managing Gaza, aside from empty declarations about finding and cultivating “local actors with management experience,” coupled with the difficulties of getting aid to the besieged population, bode ill and will only lead to further tragedies.
Consequently, the time has come to halt the offensive operations in Gaza, which in any case are now being conducted more slowly and at a much lower intensity. Instead, Israel must try as quickly as possible to finalize the proposed deal with Hamas that both sides were shown by the mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States – a lengthy cease-fire and the release of Palestinians imprisoned in Israel in exchange for the return of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
Saving the hostages while they are still alive must now top Israel’s list of priorities, even if the ambitious goal of “destroying Hamas” has not been achieved in the 146 days of fighting to date.
Israel responded to the massacre that Hamas perpetrated in the country’s south on October 7 with unprecedented force. Since the war began, the IDF has killed 30,000 Palestinians, including 12,500 children and teenagers, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry (which doesn’t report on how many of those killed were combatants). It has also destroyed sizable swaths of the Strip’s towns and villages. Even if Hamas’ leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, is still alive and in control of his remaining forces, it’s clear that the organization has been dealt a heavy blow. It’s also clear that the cease-fire wouldn’t be the end of the conflict, and the IDF would be ready to resume fighting through focused operations like the ones it carries out in the West Bank, Lebanon and Syria.
Before Gaza turns into Somalia, it’s vital to bring the hostages home, allow the IDF a much-needed breather, start investigating the failures that led to October 7 and return the evacuees to both the south and the north. It’s time now to stop.
The above article is Haaretz’s lead editorial, as published in the Hebrew and English newspapers in Israel.
