Link to article: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog-february-07-2024/
In the most recent update in the Israel-Hamas War, an Israel official said that there is “no way” that Israel accepts the current Hamas proposal. This proposal has multiple aspects. Among these is a release and return of Israeli and Palestinian prisoners, a ceasefire lasting over four months, an eventual end to the war, and a withdrawal of all Israeli forces in Gaza. Israel, however, is in complete disapproval of the current terms of a deal. Israel is not prepared to withdraw troops or begin a ceasefire and is demanding that the current deal gets reworked. United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog to speak about the proposal. Blinken walked out of the meeting hopeful that the release of hostages will resume shortly but stated that “there’s a lot of work to be done” in regards to the proposal. Publicly, the two sides seem far apart when it comes to the details of a deal, as Israel thinks Hamas is committing many violations whereas Hamas sees the deal as reasonable and fair.
Looking at Israel’s motivations historically, it is evident that they intend on taking control over Gaza despite not wanting to state it as one of their primary motivations. With most of the world, including countries allying with Israel in the past, calling for a ceasefire ad two-state solution, it is clear that Israel’s refusal of the deal is rooted in their determination to take control over the land they believe is theirs. Israel is keeping the conflict from deescalating, as Hamas, obviously in the defensive now, is looking to end the war as soon as possible. With the continuation of the war, regional and now global implications are becoming increasingly felt. The Houthi rebels are causing global economic disruption and are primarily motivated by the war that Israel refuses to resolve.
Through the terrorist attacks/interstate conflict inflicted on Israel back in October of 2023, Israel entered this war on the defensive. They were caught off guard and attacked as Hamas killed over 1,000 Israeli residents. However, at the current stage in the war, Israel has flipped to the offensive in this war. Israel is now refusing to accept a ceasefire and has Gaza under their control. The war has remained largely conventional since its unconventional start due to the surprise attacks by Hamas. Israel’s current intentions are leaning the war towards total war, as they are making attempts to take land from Palestine. However, the scale of the war falls just of total war as Israel is not looking to wipe out the nation completely. The war is also beginning to spread outside of the interstate conflict with regional implications that it once was, as the Houthi attacks have expanded it to a regional conflict with global implications at the moment. Some could even argue that due to the involvement of the United States and other countries now, that the war has boiled into a global conflict.