On Monday, October 30, 2023 we expressed our opinion on the ongoing Israeli-Gaza war. We contended that the elephant was in the room, but both Christians and Moslems are just skating around it. We were at sea as to why the Muslim world failed to condemn the deadly attack on the state of Israel by Hamas, which killed over 1,400 innocent people.
We were equally shocked that the Christian world had also kept quiet when Israel was and still slaughtering thousands of Palestinians in retaliation of what Hamas had done. We raised these two cardinal points because it appeared to us then that both Christians and Muslims have taken a belligerent stance, whilst innocent people living in Gaza were suffering from daily killings.
Now, there is this allegation that the Islamic Republic of Iran is behind Hamas and that the former has been supplying weapons to the latter to attack Israel. There is a similar school of thought that the United States of America is behind Israel, including the supply of weapons to her Middle East ally. The only difference is that, whilst Iran has publicly denied the charge, the USA has confirmed that it supplies weapons to Israel.
With this obvious proxy war going on between two sworn enemies, the citizens of both USA and Iran are living in their cosy homes, whilst the ordinary Palestinian suffers the consequences of the war.
However, whilst our position as a newspaper regarding this senseless war remains neutral, we are finding it very difficult to understand why Hamas should adopt a non-surrender posture, when thousands of the people they are fighting for, and in this case, Palestinians, are being killed like animals.
Records show that before the recent seven-day ceasefire, over 15,000 Palestinians had been killed through Israeli bombardments. As part of the ceasefire deal, Hamas released Israeli civilians who they had taken as hostages, in exchange for some Palestinians who were being detained by Israel as prisoners.
Whilst we admit that every life is very important, is Hamas happy with the release of a few Palestinians in Israeli prisons when over fifteen thousand of their people have been killed through Israeli strikes and still counting? Clearly, it will take someone who does not fear the spillage of blood to adopt such a posture.
According to Al-Jazeera television, Hamas has tabled fresh demands, which include the release of all Palestinians serving various prison terms in Israel before releasing the remaining captives who are mainly soldiers. According to the same Al-Jazeera, Israel has rejected the proposal and has vowed to continue with the war.
The big question is: who is going to suffer most if the war continues unabated? We should not lose sight of the fact that all the rockets being fired into southern Israel are not causing substantial damage, than the daily bombardment of Gaza by Israel. Those who are backing Hamas must, therefore, speak to their leaders to soften their stance and give peace a chance.
If the current trend of the war continues, The Chronicle will not be surprised if the whole of Gaza is wiped off. May God perish our thought, but should that happen, who are the people Hamas and its allies will be fighting for again?
The Chronicle is, therefore, appealing to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations to join hands with Qatar to ensure that Hamas releases the remaining Israeli captives. This will give way to proper peace negotiations that will ensure the return of everlasting peace to the troubled region.
Clearly, there is no way Israel can justify the continuous bombardments of Gaza and subsequent killing of civilians, when the captives have been released by Hasmas.
It is our hope that those who are calling the shots in this war will critically analyse the concerns we have raised and rather play the role that will lead to the peaceful resolution of the conflict. The killings going on in Gaza is very heart-breaking and the time to end the war is now!
