Are Israel, Hamas en route to war or an agreement?
Hamas' leadership seems unaware of or simply does not care that its actions to defend what it views as the honor of the movement threaten a pending cease-fire deal with Israel and make a full-blown humanitarian crisis in Gaza more likely.
On Aug. 9, Israel’s Security Cabinet was scheduled to convene for a crucial session on a long-term cease-fire deal with Hamas. Instead of debating what the Israelis dub “regulation” with Hamas, however, Cabinet members talked about responding to the firing of more than 150 rockets by Hamas from Gaza that began the evening of Aug. 8. That barrage into southern Israeli communities resulted in civilian injuries. On the morning of Aug. 9, rockets were also fired at the coastal town of Ashkelon.
Since Hamas took control of Gaza 11 years ago, Israel has not faced such an extreme paradox, with the heads of all its defense forces and the political echelon wavering between approval of a peace deal or war.
