The Critical Palestinian Moment: Ensuring the Cessation of Annihilation Towards an Independent State

Author: جمال زقوت

The Palestinian cause today is at a critical moment where humanitarian, political, and strategic dimensions intersect. After years of siege and division, and as a result of the genocidal war in Gaza, accompanied by a reckless expansion of settlements throughout the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, an opportunity arises to launch a political path that may change the rules of the game. This moment is a true test of the ability of Palestinian, Arab, and international parties to ensure a permanent cessation of the genocide, and to transform that into a path that guarantees the establishment of an independent Palestinian state along the lines of June 4, otherwise, the occupation's plans aimed at preventing the right to self-determination and continuing annexation, liquidation, and displacement schemes will rear their heads, as it is the fixed strategy governing Israeli policy.

Hamas' Approval and Netanyahu's Predicament

Hamas' approval of Trump's plan was a shocking political surprise for Israel. Netanyahu's introduction of a series of significant changes to the American plan aimed to prompt Hamas to reject it, keeping it in political isolation. However, the positive response from the movement and Trump's quick welcome removed the initiative from Netanyahu and made the acceptance of the plan a matter imposed on him.

This shift revealed Netanyahu's strategy to explode the negotiation process by creating crises around lingering issues such as weapons and security arrangements. Consequently, the question that concerns everyone is: What will Netanyahu do if he regains all the captives? Will he adhere to the political path, or will he create excuses that allow him to return to the genocidal war to complete the goals he has failed to achieve so far, especially the displacement of the people of Gaza? On the other hand, how will Washington act alongside Arab and international groups, especially the mediating countries, to ensure the success of the plan and turn it into tangible reality?

Hamas' Openness to National Dialogue

Hamas' positions included in the statement of approval of the plan, along with statements from several of its political leaders, show a willingness, perhaps unprecedented, to cooperate with the National Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization. The movement confirmed that some of the issues contained in Trump's plan cannot be addressed in isolation, and that these issues, related to the future of Gaza and national destiny, require a comprehensive national position. This openness marks a strategic shift in the movement's approach and indicates its awareness that the continuation of division will not serve anyone, and that the solution passes through rebuilding Palestinian unity as a fundamental condition to protect national rights and ensure a sustainable political path that cuts off the occupation government's attempts to cement the separation of Gaza from the national entity.

Hamas' position provides the PLO and the Palestinian Authority with a historic opportunity to restore their representative status, expand their popular base, activate their political role, and place them before the responsibility of forming national institutions capable of reinstating the national project and giving hope to our people to elevate their role as they are the decisive interest holder in shaping the national destiny and actively participating in its establishment.

The Palestinian Test

The Palestinian Authority is now facing an exceptional political test: Will it respond to this openness and seize the political moment? Continuing to distance itself will not only enable Netanyahu to explode the ceasefire plan but will give him the opportunity to proceed with establishing security dominance and imposing an alternative administration, paving the way for creating a similar model in the West Bank, which is considered the center and jewel of the Zionist project. This could turn the truce into a new political trap to undermine the national project and liquidate Palestinian rights. At the same time, this test is an opportunity to unify the Palestinian Authority across all Palestinian territories with support from all parties, paving the way towards an independent and real Palestinian state on the ground and not mere symbolic recognitions of its importance.

Despite Trump's firmness, his fluctuating positions and Netanyahu's hidden intentions compel the international community, including mediating states, to act according to a comprehensive plan focused on consolidating the ceasefire and preventing its collapse. This requires effective communication with the American administration to contain Netanyahu's attempts to explode the plan and hold Palestinians responsible, along with what this entails of pressuring the administration to exert its influence on Tel Aviv to prevent delays in withdrawals, impede relief and reconstruction, or conduct military operations or ground provocations, including assassinations or limited incursions. This necessarily requires obtaining written American guarantees, while at the same time being careful to refrain from providing any excuses that would help Israel evade its obligations.

Building a political path among Palestinian parties and seriously engaging with Hamas' call for dialogue, and responding to the Egyptian invitation to convene in Cairo with effective Arab participation leads to a practical path towards a transitional national unity government based on the Beijing Declaration, in the context of enhancing representation unity and the status of the PLO. Restoring the unity of the entity is a fundamental condition to thwart Netanyahu's games and guarantee national rights in the context of any final settlement.

Any hesitation or retreat in seizing the opportunity by different Palestinian factions will help Israel continue its plans to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state by imposing an alternative administration that guarantees its continued control over the Gaza Strip and enhances its plans for domination over the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Thus, the response of all parties to dialogue and commitment to a united collective position decisively and seriously is not merely a political choice but the first line of defense for the Palestinian national project and for the ability of Palestinians to unify their discourse and political work strategy capable of confronting the annexation and displacement plans that still represent a priority on the Zionist agenda within both the government and opposition alike.

In this context, the mediating countries become the cornerstone in investing their relationships with other influential Arab countries, particularly the Gulf states, to seize this path as a strategic step towards stability in the Eastern Mediterranean. This requires the United States to restrain Israel and prevent it from deviating from the schedule of implementing Trump's plan and working to develop its political dimensions towards recognizing the right to self-determination for the Palestinian people and their right to live freely and with dignity in their sovereign independent state based on the 1967 borders.

At the same time, developing this path requires coordinating Arab and international positions, especially European, to support the cessation of the genocide and the reconstruction of Gaza, with a clear warning that its collapse will lead to escalating extremism and regional chaos, complicating opportunities for stability throughout the region. This necessitates that all countries concerned with the stability of the region, along with the relevant international institutions, including the United Nations, to expedite the implementation of reconstruction programs to give hope to survivors of genocide and despair. There is no way to achieve this except by placing the Palestinian leadership's concerns and the issues and suffering of the people who have endured the horrors of genocide above all considerations and involving them in building their future on the ground without retreat or setbacks, thereby establishing genuine legitimacy that enables Palestinians to manage their affairs independently. All of this reinforces building an international consensus that any long-term truce must be accompanied by a comprehensive political path that restores the unity of the national entity and ensures commitment to Palestinian rights, transforming the truce from merely a temporary halt in fire to a strategic step towards an independent State of Palestine.

The only way to ensure Netanyahu does not escape the obligation of the Palestinian state is for the Palestinian parties, with serious Arab support, to seize this political moment to implement what was stated in the Beijing Agreement to form a transitional national unity government that assumes full responsibility for governance and administration in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including Jerusalem. The establishment of a unity government is not merely an administrative obligation, but an existential condition to transform the truce into a real national liberation project. Countries that have recognized the State of Palestine must exercise their influence over Washington and Tel Aviv to ensure reconstruction, prevent displacement, and compel Israel to stop annexation and settlement policies, turning national independence into a tangible reality that represents a positive element in the stability of the region, reject violence, and contribute to the prosperity of its peoples, especially the Palestinian people.