Israeli officials told local news outlets on Sunday that Egypt has proposed a three-stage deal between Hamas and Israel in a bid to reach a permanent ceasefire and eventually release all hostages.
As per Cairo's proposal, Hamas would release 40 Israelis in exchange for a 14-day truce in the Gaza Strip, while Tel Aviv would free 120 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
Though, of course, Israel has a right to dismantle Hamas' military capabilities, it must humanely wage this war. The number of civilians being killed will only galvanize Palestinians against peace and push them into the arms of Hamas. A more thorough and surgical campaign is now needed to eliminate Hamas' leadership in Gaza, as Israel is losing global support.
Tel Aviv must push back against the international community's attempt to pressure the country into a ceasefire. Israel is a sovereign country and has the right to defend itself from terrorism and pursue its interests. Hamas' military capabilities must be eliminated so that the group can never launch a terrorist attack like Oct. 7 again.
Israel continues to demonstrate that its war isn't against Hamas but against the Palestinians as a whole. Nowhere in Gaza is safe, and Israel has effectively rendered the north of the strip unlivable. Though the US, Israel's biggest ally, wants to minimize the war's intensity, it must instead exert more pressure to end the war completely.