Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire agreement after eleven days of back-and-forth that have captured the world’s attention and polarized Americans.
The Israeli security cabinet agreed on the ceasefire early Friday morning local time on the basis of what one official called “quiet in exchange for quiet” in comments to Reuters.
Official statement from Israeli govt announcing a ceasefire.
Statement stresses that the ceasefire is contingent on conditions on the ground. pic.twitter.com/YDGryshX0Y
— Raf Sanchez (@rafsanchez) May 20, 2021
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, made it clear that it was not an unconditional cessation of hostilities. His office declared that “that the reality on the ground will determine the continuation of the campaign.”
This latest flare-up between the Jewish State and terrorist group began on May 10, when the latter began lobbing rockets at the former. Since then, Israeli military forces have responded by bombing targets known to be inhabited and used by Hamas, doing its best to spare civilians by calling residents ahead of time and dropping non-explosive devices on roofs to warn them to evacuate.
Nevertheless, the higher death count on the Palestinian side as compared to the 12 on the Israelis’ has led some, including progressive members of the Democratic Party to condemn Israel as the aggressor. Some have even questioned the merit of Iron Dome, the missile defense system that keeps the Israeli civilian casualty count down.
The deal was brokered through a number of third-party mediators, Hamas and the Israeli government do not communicate directly with one another.