British Labor Party leader Keir Starmer has been criticised by members of his own party for refusing to call for a ceasefire in the war between Hamas and Israel and instead insisting on a humanitarian pause in the conflict.
As a result, 50 Labor councillors left the party. The controversy raises the question of the difference between a humanitarian pause and a ceasefire.
The conflict began in the early hours of October 7, 2023, when armed Hamas fighters launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing at least 1,400 Israelis and taking more than 200 civilians hostage.
Israel responded to this attack by launching an offensive against Gaza, beginning with a relentless aerial bombardment and now continuing with a ground offensive. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, at least 10,000 people – mostly civilians – have been killed in Gaza in the month since the conflict began, including 4,100 children.
Another 25,000 people were injured, and hundreds of thousands were displaced within the Gaza Strip, unable to leave due to the blockade imposed by Israel.
Israel’s massive bombing campaign has led, unsurprisingly, to a disastrous humanitarian situation. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the situation in Gaza as a “terrible nightmare”.
This has led the UN and other countries to pressure Israel to “pause” the fighting to at least provide temporary humanitarian relief to the people of Gaza.
Several resolutions calling for a ceasefire or truce have been tabled in the UN Security Council, but on each occasion, they have been vetoed by one or more permanent members. A non-binding resolution was passed at the UN General Assembly on October 27, but was ignored by the Israeli government.
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A humanitarian break
Gaza does not have access to basic humanitarian aid due to the siege and blockade that Israel has inflicted on the strip. Even before the war began, Gaza was subject to a 16-year blockade after Hamas took political control of the strip in June 2007.
Following the Hamas attack on October 7, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered a “complete siege” of Gaza, which included cutting off electricity, food, water and gas supplies. These shortages have put the country’s healthcare system at risk: hospitals are now running on power from electrical generators and facing severe shortages of vital medical supplies.
According to the UN, a humanitarian pause is defined as “a temporary cessation of hostilities purely for humanitarian purposes.” It is carried out for a certain period of time and in a specific geographic location.
The pause allows civilians trapped in conflict areas to escape safely, access assistance or receive medical treatment. It also allows the passage of essential supplies such as food, fuel and medicine.
In the context of Gaza, a pause could, for example, allow civilians to flee the enclave via the Rafah crossing into Egypt. The passage was open for limited periods to allow some evacuees to leave and some supplies to enter. But not enough.
There is a growing international consensus, including from countries that support Israel, such as the US, that at least a humanitarian pause is necessary.
However, some argue that using a humanitarian pause to temporarily halt the bombing of Gaza is not enough. In a report calling for a general ceasefire, Oxfam said its experience is that such pauses can even put civilians at greater risk, as there is often less clarity about safe zones and the length of pauses.
“Rumors and misinformation spread that this or that road or ‘safe zone’ has been declared a demilitarized area, but this is often not true, causing people to enter a war zone believing it is safe,” said the report. Early in the war, routes believed to be safe passages for evacuation from Gaza were bombed.
As a result, the only true humanitarian solution that seems ideal is a complete ceasefire.
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A ceasefire: roadmap to end hostilities
A ceasefire is a political process and not simply a humanitarian one. He calls on the parties to come together to find a political solution to the conflict.
It is intended to be a longer-term process than a “pause” and should apply to the entire geographic area of the conflict. In this case, that would mean the entire Gaza Strip, but also all other areas affected by the conflict, such as southern Lebanon , where Israeli troops are fighting Hezbollah.
In the context of Gaza, a ceasefire would mean a complete end to fighting on all sides and the eventual release or exchange of hostages. This would not only mean an end to the bombing of Gaza, but it would also force Hamas to stop its attacks on Israel.
It is important to note that, like a pause, a ceasefire is not a permanent peace agreement . That said, the objective would be to create the conditions for a permanent agreement.
Reaching a ceasefire would likely require the involvement of a third-party mediator, such as the US, Qatar or Iran.
In the previous war between Hamas and Israel in 2021 , both parties were eventually able to reach a ceasefire after 11 days of destruction that left more than 200 people dead. In this conflict, Egypt played an important role as a mediator.
Since the latest conflict began on October 7, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has resisted all calls for a humanitarian pause and a ceasefire .
But the US and other allies of Israel continue to pressure Netanyahu to at least pause the Israeli attack. He insists that while “ short pauses ” can be organized to allow hostages to leave or to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid, a longer cessation of hostilities is not possible until all hostages taken by Hamas are released. And so the killing continues.
Reaching a ceasefire would likely require the involvement of a third-party mediator, such as the US, Qatar or Iran.
In the previous war between Hamas and Israel in 2021 , both parties were eventually able to reach a ceasefire after 11 days of destruction that left more than 200 people dead.
In this conflict, Egypt played an important role as a mediator.
Since the latest conflict began on October 7, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has resisted all calls for a humanitarian pause and a ceasefire .
But the US and other allies of Israel continue to pressure Netanyahu to at least pause the Israeli attack. He insists that while “ short pauses ” can be organized to allow hostages to leave or to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid, a longer cessation of hostilities is not possible until all hostages taken by Hamas are released. And so the killing continues.
*This story originally appeared on The Conversation. Read the full story here.
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