After months of negotiations, Israel has agreed to a bridging agreement, thus moving one step closer to ceasefire negotiations with Hamas. The agreement is meant to address unresolved issues between the warring parties, with the goal of a permanent ceasefire.
In the words of Secretary of State Antony Blinken,
“The agreement is very clear on the schedule and the locations of IDF [Israeli Defense Forces] withdrawals from Gaza, and Israel has agreed to that.”
“We now have a path forward to save lives, bring relief to the people of Gaza, get the hostages back home, and de-escalate regional tensions,” said U.S. Permanent Representative to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield. “Again, Israel has accepted the bridging proposal. Now, Hamas must do the same.”
This is a decisive moment, particularly for the civilian population of Gaza. At least 40,000 have been killed and another 1.9 million displaced. According to the Save the Children’s Emergency Health Unit, Gaza, Polio is spreading in Gaza, and indicates the possibility of a catastrophe. The disease is highly contagious, and spreads by wastewater. Inasmuch as nearly all infrastructure in Gaza has been destroyed by shelling and bombing attacks, many streets are flooded with standing wastewater. At the same time, vaccination services have broken down as hundreds of health care workers have been killed.
To effectively stop the outbreak, a cessation of hostilities must begin immediately, according to Save the Children. All attacks on humanitarian and medical personnel must stop and people must be able to bring children to vaccination points.
“The United Nations and humanitarian agencies need to accelerate planning so that they can surge assistance into Gaza in the event of a ceasefire,” said Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield.
“A disease like polio must be prevented from making a comeback in Gaza. And we urge Israel to continue working with humanitarian agencies to provide polio vaccinations for Palestinian civilians, particularly children, in Gaza. This effort is urgent, and having a ceasefire deal will greatly facilitate the implementation of this crucial vaccination campaign.”
“We continue to work with the Israeli authorities,” said Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield, “to speed up clearances and remove restrictions so that Palestinian civilians can get much needed food, medicine, shelter, clean water, and other essentials including vaccines.”
Now the question is, will Hamas care enough about the children of Gaza to sit down at the negotiating table?
