Hamas: US Pressure 'Has No Value' in Negotiations

Facts

• Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri reiterated his group's position on Thursday that Hamas would not release Israeli hostages from Gaza until Israel agreed to end the war — which will soon enter its eighth month — adding that US pressure on Hamas 'has no value.'¹
• On Thursday, US Pres. Joe Biden, alongside 17 other global leaders, called for Hamas to release the hostages, with an unnamed official accusing Hamas political leader Yahya Sinwar — who is still at large in Gaza — of being the primary obstacle to a cease-fire deal.²
• Meanwhile, heavy bombardment continued in northern Gaza after Israel issued fresh evacuation orders for certain areas earlier this week. Witnesses said the bombing was some of the worst of the entire war. Israeli officials have also indicated that the military has effectively completed its preparations for an operation into Rafah.³
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel must go into Rafah — in which over 1M displaced Palestinians have taken refuge — to engage Hamas' remaining battalions there, causing friction with the US which has said that Israel does not need to invade Rafah to effectively deal with Hamas.³
• Israeli and Egyptian officials met on Wednesday to discuss a possible Israeli advance into Rafah, with Egyptian officials reportedly concerned that such an operation would lead to tens of thousands of Palestinians being displaced into Egyptian territory — something that officials have warned could jeopardize Egyptian-Israeli relations.⁴
• Egyptian officials have warned that the on-the-ground preparations for the operation could begin in the coming days. US officials said that a pier for humanitarian aid off the coast of northern Gaza may also be established as soon as this weekend.⁵

Sources: ¹Al Arabiya, ²The Telegraph, ³Reuters, ⁴Axios and ⁵The Wall Street Journal.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by NBC. Israel must be able to defend itself from terrorist attacks from Gaza or elsewhere, and the US is committed to preventing malicious actors from threatening Israel's legitimate concerns. However, the Biden administration is losing its patience with Netanyahu's intransigence. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is rapidly getting out of hand, and the situation must be remedied. An Israeli offensive in Rafah would only make the situation worse.
• Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. In these critical times, Israel's military is diligently preparing for the possibility of an offensive into Rafah to dismantle Hamas' remaining battalions. Israel has fought a noble fight against Hamas' terror, and it seems imperative that Israel enter Rafah and finish this once and for all. However, given the complexities of the situation, Israel will calculate its next moves carefully.
• Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. Regardless of whether Israel is allowed to enter Rafah or not, the US is responsible for the atrocities Israel has inflicted upon the Palestinians of Gaza. The Biden admin., worried about domestic political pressures, wants to make it seem as if it never fully supported this war, when from the very beginning Israel has been dependent on the US in its campaign to destroy Gaza and starve its people.

Predictions