Israel repeatedly accused Hamas of prolonging the war with its refusal to release Israeli hostages, and said the organisation – proscribed as a terror group by the UK, US and EU – used civilians as human shields in Gaza. According to the Hamas-run health ministry in the territory, more than 68,000 people have been killed since Israel invaded Gaza.
Israel’s invasion followed the 7 October attack by Hamas in which more than 1,200 people, mostly Israeli civilians, were killed and 251 taken hostage into Gaza. Since then, arrest warrants for alleged war crimes have been issued by the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, as well as the military commander of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, although Hamas later confirmed he had been killed in an air strike.
The signing of the Trump ceasefire agreement also saw the release of 20 living Israeli hostages from Gaza with continuing efforts to recover the remains of the dead. Israel released 250 Palestinian prisoners who had been convicted of crimes including murder and deadly attacks against Israelis, and about 1,700 detainees from Gaza who had been held by Israel without charge.
When I asked Queen Rania if she believed a lasting peace was possible, she said hope for this was not naive, but a form of defiance.
“I truly believe that Palestinians and Israelis can exist side by side,” she said. “In the current atmosphere, there’s too much animosity, too much anger and grief and hatred and cynicism between the two peoples to actually forge a peace on their own. I’m not being naive here. But I think with the push of the international community, that is the only way.
“So many times during the past two years, hope had felt elusive. Choosing hope was not easy… it’s hard, it’s heavy. But it’s the only path that doesn’t deny Palestinians or betray their struggle or our humanity.”
With additional reporting by Alice Doyard, Suha Kawar, David McIlveen and Liam Connell.
