The End of One Stage and the Beginning of Another... and the Required Review

No two people can disagree that we are not witnessing the end of the struggle in Palestine, but rather the beginning of a new phase of this colonial and bloody conflict that has lasted for more than one hundred and twenty years. The outcomes of the Sharm El-Sheikh conference – or rather its theatrical performance – have confirmed that what took place was not a cessation of war, expansion, and hegemony, but a rearrangement of its tools and goals. Israel has resumed its airstrikes and assaults on specific points in the Gaza Strip under the same pretext of "security," which has lost all credibility, while not a word regarding the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination was uttered by the genocide emperor Donald Trump. This implies that the Arabs will once again be occupied with an endless political or non-political track surrounding the "solution." Consequently, the Palestinian people and their national elites are placed before a new maze, which could be an opportune moment to restore balance and take hold of the correct path.

The ceasefire agreement is not the end of the strategy of erasure, nor a turning point in Zionist thought, but rather the closing of an atrocious and brutal extermination chapter that has lasted two years, paving the way for a new phase of slow and less noisy erasure. The upcoming eradication will not necessarily be physical or collective, as the American empire and its allies have realized that the gang of killers managing Israel has become a burden on the plan to re-establish external influence. Therefore, the focus will be on political erasure and targeting leadership and activists, while the greatest challenge before the extermination regime remains how to confront the global popular resistance against colonialism and the international court decisions that have begun to besiege Israel morally and legally.

As for the priority for the people of Gaza, and for all our people, it is to stop the genocide war that has consumed both young and old, and to grant hundreds of thousands a moment to catch their breath, to mourn their loved ones, homes, and dreams. This is not merely a humanitarian pause after hell, but also a strategic achievement that has prevented the implementation of the displacement and uprooting project, which was a declared goal of the American-Israeli extermination alliance. The decisive factor in this is the legendary steadfastness and unique resistance of Gaza.

Nevertheless, this most ferocious round in the history of the Palestinian-Zionist confrontation has not brought about a shift in the balance of power, but rather entrenched the superiority of the American-Israeli system over Palestine and the region, without achieving any decisive conclusion. Israel has failed to achieve its major goals, the foremost being the destruction of Hamas, which is still capable of maintaining internal security and field control. Therefore, Israel, along with both its ruling and opposition wings, will remain disturbed and anxious, searching for new pretexts to target Gaza, as it does in Lebanon and Syria.

The greatest failure for Netanyahu is reviving the Palestinian cause and returning it to the forefront of global attention, after he spent his political life trying to bury it. No matter how many tools of power Israel possesses, it has become incapacitated in the face of the global moral and cognitive revolution that has unveiled the nature of the Zionist project as a racist colonial movement, one of the most brutal in history. The deep moral ailment in the systems of the West and its leaders has been exposed, and the moral cover that has long provided protection for Israel has crumbled. Thus, the damage inflicted on its international reputation is irreparable, a strategic loss that has become a point of consensus even among its supporters. Attempts to save Israel's standing or halt the process of ostracization have no chance.

In light of these facts, the Palestinian intellectual, along with political and intellectual elites, stands in confusion. How can this bloody moment be transformed into an opportunity for steadfastness and reconstruction? The task is arduous and hindered, despite the sincere independent efforts. The widening division complicates matters – not just between the Oslo Authority and the resistance, but also among the intellectuals themselves, who differ on the meaning of victory and defeat, and on the assessment of the results of this round. Here, it is essential to distinguish between constructive and necessary critical differences and the blind ideological animosity of some intellectuals against the resistance movement; those who have practiced self-flagellation amid the extermination while limiting themselves to gentle criticism of the Oslo Authority that has practically aligned with the Zionist-Emirati position.

National independent initiatives led by sincere nationalists possess important reform visions, but they have not yet brought about a qualitative leap, due to many reasons; some are objective related to the repressive environment and division and the social decay it has caused, and others are subjective related to weak performance and political imagination. Perhaps people need new leadership models: wise, creative, capable of mobilizing the masses, and addressing the new generation that has been marginalized or has withdrawn from national action. In my opinion, this is not far-fetched.

No review or awakening is expected from the authority after three decades of indulging in self-preservation at the expense of the people's interests. It has deafened itself to the voice of its people, deeply engaged in security coordination even during the genocide, and openly condemned the resistance, waiting to return to Gaza. However, it did not realize that those it had relied upon among the rulers of Israel have departed without return, that Israel has fundamentally changed, and that what governs today is a messianic clique steeped in extermination thought, entrenched in the heart of the majority of Zionist society. Therefore, liberation or emancipation is once again measured by the historical perspective, not by rapid transformation. This is a point that all of us must recognize, for the ramifications of this realization necessitate the establishment of a long-term action path that relies on popular civil resistance, enabling Palestinians to bear the burden of struggle and construction: building educational, cultural, and economic institutions, and grassroots, trade union, and professional movements based on democratic foundations.

Any real disruption of the extermination policy requires escalating external pressure, but conditioned on rebuilding the internal Palestinian house. The Palestinian political body, with all its official and popular components, needs a profound and courageous review: Hamas, Fatah, and other factions, in addition to the independent elites engaged in reform initiatives, which must develop their tools and renew their ranks with educated young blood. Yes, all of us without exception – institutions, movements, and individuals – are called to review and take a moment of self-reflection.

We are at the beginning of a new phase, no less dangerous than the previous one, but it carries within it an opportunity to restore respect for the Palestinian national liberation project, provided that we possess the moral, intellectual, and political courage to alleviate the suffering of our people, especially in wounded Gaza, contribute to its recovery, and then begin to build a safe and less costly path toward the future.