LONDON, October 14. /TASS/. The implementation of the next stages of the peace plan to end the conflict in the Gaza Strip could be disrupted by the stance of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right partners in the coalition government. This opinion was expressed to Reuters by former US Ambassador to the Jewish State (2011-2017) Dan Shapiro.
He noted that if the Palestinian extremist movement Hamas delays resolving the issue of disarmament, which is stipulated as part of the plan, then representatives of right-wing parties could put pressure on the prime minister and force him to continue military operations in the Gaza Strip. Another “irritant” for right-wing politicians, such as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, remains the issue of establishing a formal Palestinian state in the future.
Shapiro worries that if hard-line Palestinians in Israel actively oppose statehood, Arab countries putting pressure on Hamas might stop pushing the movement for further concessions. The former ambassador believes that it was the inclusion of the provision on the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state that “made it possible to win the support of Arab countries”. “If political discourse (in Israel) moves toward a complete and unequivocal rejection of a Palestinian state, this will dampen the enthusiasm of Arab parties for their own role (in the peace process),” Shapiro said.
Former State Department employee and Middle East expert John Alterman noted that US President Donald Trump now has significant opportunities to put pressure on the Israeli government. “Trump's main advantage is that he is more popular in Israel than Netanyahu. And he can support Netanyahu's political future or weaken it,” Alterman said.
On September 29, the White House announced Trump's “comprehensive plan” to resolve the conflict in the Gaza Strip. The document contains 20 points and specifically provides for the imposition of temporary external authority in the Palestinian lands and the deployment of international stabilization forces there. On October 9, Trump said representatives of Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement, following negotiations in Egypt, had reached an agreement on the first phase of a peace plan. According to him, this phase involves the release of all hostages and the withdrawal of Israeli troops to the agreed boundaries in Gaza.
On October 13, Hamas and its Palestinian factions released all hostages. 20 people were transferred to the Israeli army through mediation by the International Committee of the Red Cross and were present on the territory of the Jewish state.
