Amir Tsarfati Update: As Ceasefire Talks With Hamas Reach A Stalemate, Israel Forewarns: We’re Done Playing Around

As Ceasefire Talks With Hamas Reach A Stalemate, Israel Forewarns: We’re Done Playing Around

Amir Tsarfati

Phase One of the ceasefire is done. Thirty-eight hostages were returned, of whom eight were already dead. Gaza is saying, “Okay, it’s time for Phase Two.” Israel is responding, “Not so fast.” With the way that Hamas is interpreting the second phase of the deal, Israel must completely clear out of Gaza and the terrorist group will stay in power. For Israel, that’s a non-starter.

U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff attempted to extend the first phase of the deal while others tried to work out new plans. In Witkoff’s proposal, the ceasefire would extend 45 days and Israel would receive 30 hostages – 12 who are alive and 18 who are dead. To no one’s surprise, Hamas rejected it. Meanwhile, the Arab gathering in Cairo proposed a $50 billion Gaza reconstruction deal. However, it neglected to mention who would front the money and it does not stipulate to the removal of Hamas. Once again, Hamas rejected it. But Israel and the U.S. also eschewed the plan, as they will any proposal that keeps Hamas in Gaza.

So, what do we do with this stalemate? If you’re Israel, you take action. First, you confirm Hamas’s rejection of the Witkoff proposal. If the terrorists truly say no, then Israel will block all humanitarian aid to Gaza. By the way, the Houthis of Yemen say that if Israel blocks this aid, they will ban all Israeli ships from the Red Sea. That could lead to some major fireworks.

If Hamas still refuses to move forward and return the remaining hostages, Israel will cut the 19% of Gaza’s water that it supplies. If Hamas still refuses, Israel will cut electricity to Gaza’s desalination plants so that they cannot purify their own water. If Hamas still refuses, Israel will resume air attacks. If Hamas still refuses, Israel will resume a ground war. To this final end, Israel’s government approved a call-up of 400,000 reserves. That’s 100,000 more than were called up after October 7. In other words, Israel is not playing around.

Just yesterday, Israel installed Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir as the new Chief of Staff of the IDF. He is a fighter with an excellent strategic head on his shoulders. If the war in Gaza turns hot once again, he’s the man to lead Israel to victory.

Deeper into Syria

Israel is taking advantage of the confusion surrounding the new regime in Syria. As the HTS government is trying to sort itself out with its numerous ISIS, Al Qaeda, and other factions vying for influence, the IDF is entrenching itself on Mount Hermon and doing what it can to be patrons to the Druze community of southern Syria. The goal of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government is to create a new independent county in southern Syria for the Druze. To this end, the prime minister has already declared that everything south of Damascus must be demilitarized.

Netanyahu has also established a roadblock in the Syrian town of El Mal, located between the capital city and the Israeli border, where the IDF can ensure that no weapons are being smuggled along that route from the Islamist regime in Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

Any places that Israel discovers are militarized in the south are being wiped out, and the Netanyahu government is making it clear that Turkey has no place in the new Syria. Meanwhile, business as usual is returning to northern Israel. People are finally returning to their homes, and the ski resorts on Mount Hermon are back open for the first time since before the war began.

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