As Hamas Focuses on Ceasefire, Israel-US Begin to Implement Plan on Gaza

TEL AVIV, SUNDAY - Israel and the United States are becoming increasingly serious about realizing the plan to relocate Palestinian residents and seize Gaza. After expressing gratitude for US support, Israel received a visit from US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio. Meanwhile, Hamas called on Israel to respect the ceasefire agreement.

On Saturday night (15/2/2025), US Secretary of State Rubio arrived at Ben Gurion Airport, Lod, Israel. This is his first trip to the Middle East. This visit is part of a Middle East tour, and Rubio will also visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Rubio was welcomed by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. He will meet with several officials, including Netanyahu, on Sunday (16/2/2025). They will discuss the second phase of the ceasefire, the impact of Hamas attacks on Israel, and continue Trump's proposal regarding Gaza, said a State Department official last week.

Since early February 2025, the US President, Donald Trump, has put forward several ideas regarding the management of Gaza. He proposed forcibly relocating 2.2 million Palestinian residents in Gaza permanently to surrounding Arab countries, particularly Egypt and Jordan. The US would also seize and develop Gaza as the "Riviera of the Middle East."

The US president's proposal echoes the long-standing trauma of Palestinians regarding the Nakba. Nakba, which means catastrophe in Arabic, refers to the mass expulsion of Palestinians during the establishment of Israel in 1948. When Israel was founded, around 700,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes in the area that is now the state of Israel.

Some observers say Trump's idea is a proposal for ethnic cleansing of Palestine.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked US President Donald Trump for US support in Gaza, Saturday (15/2/2025). This expression of gratitude came after Israel and Hamas completed the sixth hostage-prisoner exchange as part of the ceasefire agreement.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu appreciates the president’s full support for Israel’s decisions regarding the Gaza Strip in future developments,” the Prime Minister’s office said in a statement.

Earlier, on Truth Social social media, Trump wrote, “Israel must now decide what they will do. The United States will support the decision they make!” he added.

The second ceasefire would include the release of the remaining hostages and a permanent end to the war. Details of the deal have yet to be agreed. A source close to the negotiations said mediators hope to begin talks on the second phase next week in Doha.

The US has expressed openness to alternative proposals from Arab governments. But Washington has stressed that the only plan right now is Trump's. "So if they have a better plan, now is the time to present it," Rubio said Thursday (2/13/2025).

Meanwhile, Hamas on Saturday (2/16/2025) stressed that the US must force Israel to comply with the ceasefire agreement and secure the release of hostages still being held in the Palestinian territories. The US acts as a mediator with Egypt and Qatar.

“The United States must force Israel to comply with the agreement if it truly cares about the lives of the prisoners,” said Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesman, in a statement issued after Hamas released three Israeli hostages.

On the same day, Hamas and Israel completed the sixth hostage-prisoner exchange for the first phase of the ceasefire. Hamas released three Israeli citizens, while Israel released 369 Palestinians held in prison.

The three Israeli citizens are Iair Horn (46), Sagui Dekel-Chen (36), and Alexander Troufanov (29). Meanwhile, of the 369 Palestinian citizens, among them is Ahmed Barghouti (48), a military figure from the Fatah Party. As many as 24 of them will be exiled abroad.

“When I saw my son, my soul came back to me and I came back to life,” said Om Bashar, the mother of Hassan Aweis, a Palestinian prisoner who was sentenced to life in prison in 2002 on charges of murder, planting an explosive device and attempted murder.

The swap nearly fell through after Hamas accused Israel of blocking aid from reaching Gaza and said it would not bow to Israeli and U.S. threats. Hamas changed its mind after receiving a promise from Egyptian and Qatari mediators to remove “all obstacles” to security aid.

There are about two weeks left in the first phase of the ceasefire. There have been no substantive negotiations on a second phase of the ceasefire. The plan is for Hamas to release all remaining hostages in exchange for an end to the war.

Of the 251 people kidnapped by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attacks, about 70 remain in Gaza, while half are believed to have died. Almost all are men, including Israeli soldiers. Israel has also committed to releasing more than 1,000 people detained in Gaza as long as they did not participate in the October 7 attacks.

Quoted from The Guardian, Israeli media Channel 12 reported that Netanyahu's cabinet agreed that if the three hostages were released as planned on Saturday, Israel would remain committed to the ceasefire. However, that commitment is not certain to happen.

Netanyahu's right-wing allies want the war to resume as early as March 2025. They want to destroy Hamas. Despite the war lasting 15 months, Hamas still controls Gaza.

But many Israelis want a deal to bring back all remaining hostages, urging Netanyahu to send a senior delegation to the second phase of ceasefire talks.

“Another decision is sabotage that endangers the lives of the kidnap victims,” said Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan Zangauker at a rally in Tel Aviv, Saturday (2/15/2025).

Hamas may be reluctant to release more hostages if it believes war will resume. The Hamas-Israel war since Oct. 7, 2023 has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed all efforts by parties to comply with the Gaza ceasefire agreement. He urged action to achieve a permanent ceasefire and the release of all hostages.

“Peace is possible in the Middle East, and it starts with real, irreversible and permanent progress towards a two-state solution,” Guterres tweeted at X on Sunday.

(AP/AFP/Reuters)