Meanwhile on the International front....

ok




Middle East Crisis: Israeli Military Warns More Than 100,000 People in Rafah to Evacuate

 

Hamas said there was an agreement when there was none. I can't say that is a surprise.

Hamas wants no part of a ceasefire. They want any deal to be the end of the war with them still in business. Israel isn't going to accept that.

 

Hamas' statement makes sense strategically. "We're willing to end the war now."

Bibi does not want that. They could hand him every hostage in the next 30 minutes and he'll refuse to end the war.

 

Hamas said it had accepted an Egyptian - Qatari ceasefire proposal. It remains to be seen whether Israel accepts the same proposal.

Sounds like it will not.

 

You would think that should be unconditional item No. 1, but the reports I keep reading say Hamas is only willing to give up about 30 of the 100 hostages — in exchange for a ceasefire and a ton of other concessions, including the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. That right there should make it hard to take any negotiations seriously. Hamas is trying to play the beleaguered victim, while also trying to play hardball. Either they don't fully grasp their situation, or they're too hardcore to ever surrender.

 

Same for Netanyahu.

https://www.reuters.com/world/middl...lis-protest-demand-hostage-return-2024-05-04/

Hamas got that deal once already . . . from Netanyahu.

Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange.

 

That was before Oct. 7. How do you not realize that changed things?

 

It appears as if the terms of the proposal Hamas accepted are very close to those Israel accepted at the end of April. Now "very close" and "the same" are not equal, especially in wartime negotiations.

 

The question is not whether I think things have changed. Of course they have.

The question is whether Hamas thinks it can get the same kind of deal, having gotten that deal before.

 

They were getting close to a deal. Bibi blew it up intentionally.