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Harry Fear's Blog

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This article was written on 19 Jan 2025, and is filed under Journalism.

Gaza Ceasefire: Return, Rubble & Resilience

The image shows a heavily damaged multi-story building reduced to rubble. Large concrete slabs have collapsed, with exposed rebar and broken walls hanging precariously. Debris, including shattered bricks, twisted metal wires, and remnants of household items, is scattered across the ground. The destruction appears extensive, leaving only fragments of the original structure intact. The scene conveys the aftermath of intense conflict or bombing, highlighting the devastating impact on infrastructure.

It’s ceasefire day in Gaza. Aya, who we first met in war in 2014, returns to the remains of her home in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza. “It looks like crumbs, complete destruction.”

But they’re lucky to have survived 15 months of total war; an attempt at genocide. Then the Americans told the Israelis to stop, and they stopped; just as I predicted when the war broke out in late 2023 — two calendar years ago from now.

Will the ceasefire hold for 6 weeks? Will it ever reach stage 3, which should involve the reconstruction of Gaza — a task so monumental that even the initial waste clearance operation would take $1.2bn USD and more than a decade to complete.

And so on the one hand, Israel has won: it managed to drop many times over Hiroshima-level destruction on Gaza over more than a year; all while the world stood by and normalised it, underwriting Palestinians’ worth as less than human. (The important exceptions—most obviously, South Africa, who successfully took Israel to the international courts.)

Israel’s global reputation is so damaged at this point that its i24 News channel appears not to even bother to offer a full 24/7 English-language service to push an Israeli genocide apologia viewpoint to the world. Almost everyone under the age of 30 sees Israel as a pariah state on their mobile phone; Israel has reached Apartheid South Africa status.

Eliminate Hamas was the goal; instead, the Israeli state has literally signed a deal with Hamas. Yes, Israel is regionally strategically advantaged compared to autumn 2023 – but now, only madmen like Trump would be seen to warm-dialogue with madman Netanyahu.

The coming weeks will prove whether Netanyahu and Trump Mk 2 secretly intend to return to war in Gaza. Or whether West Bank annexation will be a Trump gift to restrain Netanyahu; as was the Jerusalem US embassy move a gift in 2018.

But the madder the situation gets, the more strongly one senses an impending demise of the colonial injustice. One constant, though: The Palestinians will mourn their dead but predictably rise from the ashes. And for at least this Sunday, we can all breathe again.

Thanks to all those who donated since winter 2023 to raise funds for Aya and her family to survive their internal displacement.