A Ceasefire in Name Only

"In October, Hamas and Israel signed a peace deal supposedly intended to stop two years of slaughter in Gaza. Since then, more than 420 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire-an average of about four people a day-in what international mediators continue to describe as a successful de-escalation. The distance between that official narrative and the facts on the ground reveals how the language of ceasefire has been repurposed: It no longer describes a pause in violence but rather a mechanism for managing it, sanitizing ongoing military force under the guise of restraint."

"Those killed-many of them women and children-have been routinely described as threats, trespassers, or collateral casualties of the enforcement of the ceasefire. This has included families attempting to return to their homes, only to find their neighborhoods designated as off-limits beyond an ever-shifting "yellow line" drawn by Israel. Palestinian health officials have documented more than a thousand Israeli violations since the ceasefire took effect, including air strikes, artillery fire, and fatal shootings. The ceasefire has thus functioned precisely as intended: a framework for killing and controlling Palestinians at a slower, more diplomatically acceptable pace."

In October, Hamas and Israel signed a ceasefire supposedly intended to stop two years of slaughter in Gaza. Since then, more than 420 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire—an average of about four people a day—despite international mediators describing the deal as a successful de-escalation. The language of ceasefire has been repurposed to manage and sanitize ongoing military force rather than to pause violence. Many of the dead were women and children described as threats or collateral casualties. Families attempting to return home find neighborhoods off-limits beyond an ever-shifting "yellow line". Palestinian health officials documented over a thousand Israeli violations, including air strikes, artillery, and fatal shootings.

Read at The Nation