On Monday, a ceasefire agreement was reached in the Israel-Hamas war. The deal, which was brokered by the United States, includes a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas. In addition, Hamas must return the bodies of 28 Israeli hostages believed to be dead in Gaza, so far, four have been returned. As the world questions whether the latest ceasefire agreement will hold, WAMC’s Jesse Taylor spoke with the Westchester/Fairfield Regional Director of the American Jewish Committee Myra Clark-Siegel to gauge what the ceasefire means for the Gaza Strip.
So I think first of all, I want to talk a little bit about what the conflict in the Middle East is, because that is a big general term, and it means a lot of different things. There is no no one conflict in the Middle East. The Middle East is an extremely complicated place with multiple players and factors. And I think that it's very important to understand the complexity of the Middle East. You've got the Gulf, you've got North Africa. It is a very, very complex area, if we look however, at what yesterday, specifically, October 13 meant.
It meant that after 738 days, two full years since Hamas, a designated terror organization, attacked Israel on a Jewish holiday and on the Sabbath and murdered over 1,200 people in their homes and took 251 people hostage from their homes into Gaza. Yesterday, after 738 days, The final 20 living hostages were finally released by Hamas, and it was part of a 20 point deal that the Trump administration put forward to try to move things forward in this area of the world and eventually work for a better future for Israelis and Palestinians.
So, we've seen ceasefire deals before. This isn't the first one. Do you think that this one will last? Is there anything different about this that will that will contribute to a lasting peace?
So, a deal is exactly that. It is a negotiated deal between different parties, and it is important that everyone who signs on to that lives up to what they've signed to. That is when you have a break on a cease fire, is that a party, typically Hamas, which is a terror organization, breaks that deal, which they already did yesterday, by the way, because Hamas was supposed to return the bodies of over 20 individuals who were kidnapped and killed on October 7, or killed while they were in captivity by Hamas. As part of this deal that was brokered, they were supposed to return those bodies. They only returned four yesterday, so I think it's important to note they've already broken the deal, but let's hope that that negotiated peace can be continued. My hope is, my fervent hope is that, because there are multiple entities that are engaged, this really is a coalition of so many countries, both Arab countries and Muslim majority countries and other leaders in the western world as well that they will continue to keep Hamas responsible to live up to what they agreed to do in this 20 point plan. And I think that what's also important to think about and understand is, if the pressure is kept up on Hamas, because Hamas must lay down its weapons, it is a designated terror entity, funded and supported by Ian And as long as these countries ensure that Hamas really is defanged, if you will. There is a real future, and we cannot lose sight of the moment of what this potential future could be for the people of the Middle East and North Africa. This could be the beginning of something really significant for better lives, for Palestinians and Israelis and for the region, and, quite frankly, for the world.
So you just said that, you know, Hamas must lay down its arms. And there are those that would say that, in addition to that, Israel must also stop conducting strikes like it has been. How do you respond to that claim?
So I want to remind everybody what happened 700 now, 39 days ago, again, October, 7, there was not one Israeli in Gaza. Israel had. Unilaterally, pulled out every single Israeli from Gaza in 2005. Israelis were living in their homes. It was again a holiday. It was the Sabbath, and Hamas terrorists intentionally went into Israel, crossed the border into Israel and attacked Israelis and quite frankly, let's remember Americans were both murdered and taken hostage, kidnapped, and people from over 30 countries were murdered, horrific things done to them, which I will not go into publicly, and kidnapped. And this was Hamas, a terror organization that did this. We must be clear eyed about what happened. Hamas is a terror organization. Israel has responded, and it took Israel over 20 days to even respond to what Hamas did, and we need to be very clear eyed about the fact that Hamas is a designated terror organization funded and trained by Ian and it is incumbent upon world leaders to ensure that Hamas as a terror organization, can no longer continue to reign over Gaza or anywhere else.
And although this conflict is overseas, we've seen division stateside, here in the US. Do you think that this deal is a step towards closing that division?
I think that anyone who called for a cease fire or peace should be celebrating what the possibility is for the future of everybody in the region, and should be really celebrating the fact that the 20 living hostages were finally returned home yesterday. Should be celebrating the fact that there is a cease fire in place. And should really be in the same way that they were publicly calling for a cease fire. Should be celebrating the fact that there is one now that is really important. Civil discourse is critical in our country. We're a democracy. We should respect each other and have civil conversations with each other, and it is my hope that as we look at the possibility of what this 20 point plan entails and what the peace summit in Sharm El-Sheikh, which took place yesterday, with again, representatives of Muslim majority countries and Arab countries and European countries and the United States.
My hope is that this will lead to a better future for Israelis, for Palestinians, for everyone in the Middle East and again, around the world. That is my fervent hope. But what it means is that we all need to be committed to really ensuring that we have civil discourse and respect for one another, both here in the United States and around the world that's fundamental to upholding our democratic principles.
You're the AJC's Westchester and Fairfield Regional Director. What kind of reaction are you seeing from your community?
I think that again, what's really important here is after 738 days where Americans, where people from over 30 countries, had been murdered, had been taken hostage and held in the most depraved conditions by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. We finally, finally, finally had 20, the last 20 living hostages released yesterday for 738 days, people held their breath and worked actively to ensure that the hostages were going to be freed and that those who had been murdered by Hamas would be released so that their families could bury them with dignity. What we have heard is a slow release of people who held their breath for two years and a cautious optimism for a better future for everybody, and that is what we are working towards. Five years ago, the Abraham accords were signed, which really ushered in an extraordinary opportunity for the Middle East. And we have a key moment here that we cannot lose sight of and that we cannot let up on, which is to expand the Abraham accords and. Ian a better possibility for everyone in the Middle East, and that has a ripple effect all around the world. So our community is celebrating the 20 living hostages, the last 20 living hostages that were released, working actively to ensure that the hostage remains that were supposed to be released yesterday, as part of this deal, will be released so that families can bury their loved ones with dignity and ensure that we are working towards the expansion of the Abraham accords to find a better future for everybody.
Okay, thank you, Myra.
Thank you, Jesse, I hope that you're having a good day.
You as well.
All right, take care.
You too.
Bye, bye.
