Breathe
By Cristina Gutiérrez
After 15 months of war, more than 46,000 Palestinians killed and unprecedented destruction, yesterday, January 15, the Israeli government and the Palestinian group Hamas reached a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. The pact is expected to take effect this Sunday, January 19, and includes a three-phase plan. During the first phase, Hamas would hand over 33 hostages captured during the October 7 attacks last year and Israel would begin the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and begin a phased withdrawal of its troops in northern Gaza. The agreement would also allow thousands of displaced people in Gaza to return to what remains of their homes and the passage of humanitarian aid that has been severely restricted to date.
The second phase of the agreement would include the release of the remaining hostages and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, although Israel has stated that some military units will remain indefinitely at various points along the border.The third and final phase focuses on the reconstruction of Gaza, which shows monumental devastation caused by the war.
There are many questions surrounding the future of Gaza, particularly about who will rule the territory after the war. Israel has declared that it will not allow Hamas to remain in power. It has also refused to allow the Palestinian National Authority, which rules the West Bank, to rule the Gaza Strip. Predictably, Israel intends to rule the enclave or as they call it "administer Gaza's security". It remains to be seen how this issue develops, but taking into account the cruel policy of occupation that Israel has maintained for years in the West Bank and the years of blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip, it is doubtful that Israel will relinquish control of the territory.
Beyond the governance of Gaza, it remains to be seen how the plan for its reconstruction, including its social fabric, will be carried out. Most of the homes, hospitals, schools and mosques have been almost completely destroyed. Ninety percent of Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants have been displaced during the war and have had to leave their homes, most of which have been totally destroyed. Where will they return to? The education and health systems are inoperative and it will take years to re-establish them to be able to function properly. What will happen to the population in need of medical care and the children who deserve access to education?
According to UN figures, more than 18,000 children have been orphaned in Gaza as a result of the war, many of whom have no surviving family members. What will happen to these children? Who will be responsible for their physical and emotional development? Most of these children, beyond their orphaned status, have traumas and emotional wounds that are unlikely to ever heal.
We will have to wait years for the answer to these questions. The cease-fire agreement would indeed mean an immediate pause in Israel's indiscriminate attacks on Gaza and a respite for the Gazan population, however it is still unclear whether it will actually be carried out in the terms established and whether it will truly mean the end of this devastating war. Hopefully it will, hopefully both sides will comply so that there can be a lasting peace in the region. The people of Gaza have suffered too much and deserve to live in freedom and peace.
*Cristina Gutiérrez Salman has a degree in International Trade from Tecnológico de Monterrey. She has worked mainly in the areas of logistics and foreign trade.
She is a happy mom.
For the past 10 years or so, he has been studying the Palestinian-Palestinian conflict for the past ten years.
Israeli and in 2015 organized the conference "Palestine Beyond Zionism" with activist
Israeli Miko Peled.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of the company. Opinion 51.
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