By Iqbal Jassat
Far-right Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir accused the Benjamin Netanyahu regime of 'a complete surrender to Hamas', terming the Gaza ceasefire agreement a 'surrender deal'.
For once he was right, says Ramzy Baroud, a Palestinian-American journalist and author.
Public sentiment in the settler colonial regime on the ceasefire agreement that came into effect on Sunday morning as gleaned from various media platforms within the Zionist regime is categorical:
"The peace deal it just cut with Hamas was clearly a win for Hamas and a loss for Israel."
The joy and cheer among Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip - despite colossal destruction and a huge toll in loss of lives - reflects a mood of victory for steadfast resilience, patient forbearance and profound faith that truth will vanquish falsehood.
Over 15 months of withstanding and resisting the Zionist entity's brutal scorched-earth military policies that saw the destruction of lives and properties, the evil inhumane deprivation of water, food, medical care, and the displacement of the entire population, is a remarkable feat.
Netanyahu and his criminal gang of warlords failed to dislodge and dismember the Gaza-based Hamas resistance movement. His failure is shrouded in shame, humiliation and despair.
And worse, along with his former minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant, he faces arrest warrants.
With the colonial regime's reputation in tatters, Hamas and all other resistance factions are justly able to celebrate victory emanating from the momentous Al Aqsa Flood of October 7.
Undoubtedly world opinion has turned against Israel despite the enormous resources it spent on Hasbara (propaganda) projects.
The success of the resistance can be measured by the fact that Hamas negotiated the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, many of whom have been sentenced to life terms.
Iran hails Palestinians ‘unmatched victory,’ their forcing Israel to surrenderhttps://t.co/U9eUjHfx34
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In contrast, Hamas will only have to release three captives. Four more will be released shortly after that. In total, during the first phase,e a total of 33 captives will be released.
The trade-off in exchange is tilted in favor of Hamas, metaphorically adding salt to Zionism's wound.
It is crucial to emphasize that Israel has failed in all its military objectives as stated at the beginning of the genocidal war, which included the total elimination of Hamas in Gaza.
Having survived and added thousands of fighters to its ranks, Hamas and other resistance groups, including Islamic Jihad, have outsmarted Israel and its Western backers led by the US.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken as recently as a few days ago publicly acknowledged this fact, much to the obvious dismay of his Zionist cohorts within the US as well as in Tel Aviv.
Pro-Israeli media have grudgingly admitted that the cost of Netanyahu's 15-month-long genocide of the apartheid regime has been mind-boggling.
Not only has Hamas been able to kill hundreds of Israeli regime soldiers and wounding thousands more in Gaza since October 7 but the regime's debt has also spiraled out of control.
Estimates by economists reveal that its economy and labor market has been severely dented. Emigration is at an all-time high, eroding the misplaced romantic ideal of milk and honey.
Israel is much weaker today than it was on October 6, 2023. Cases of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and war crimes at the International Criminal Court (ICC); outstanding UN Resolutions in respect of illegal settlements and the potential of its membership being stripped are scenarios that will haunt it as rogue regimes deserve to be sanctioned.
The world, especially the youth at university campuses, across Western capitals, has come to understand and revolt against Zionism as a racist, expansionist political ideology - far removed from Judaism.
“Our blood exposed the world’s hypocrisy”
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Ziad Nakhaleh, Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad Movement, announces that the ceasefire will be implemented within a few hours, praising Palestinian resilience and support from allies like Iran and Hezbollah. pic.twitter.com/nnnE70IXX1
It is not surprising that Jewish historian and widely acclaimed author Ilan Pappe has described the current regime in Tel Aviv as neo-Zionist.
"The old values of Zionism are now more extreme, [in] far more aggressive form than they were before, trying to achieve in a short time what the previous generation of Zionists was trying to achieve in [a] much longer, more, incremental, gradual way," he stated recently.
"Historically, I’m willing to say with some caution that this is the last phase of Zionism. Historically, such developments in ideological movements, whether they are colonials or empires, it’s usually the final chapter [that is] the ruthless one, the most ambitious one. And then it’s too much and then they fall and collapse", he added.
However Israel’s sordid reputation as far as its contempt for international laws, particularly International Humanitarian Law is known, it is likely that Netanyahu and his criminal gang of warlords will do their damnest to scuttle the ceasefire.
Already we see signs of disgruntlement among them and despair too that a ceasefire means defeat and failure to attain any of Netanyahu's military goals.
The Palestinian population in the besieged Gaza have despite suffering unimaginable losses, pain and suffering over the last 15 months of relentless bombings around the clock, have remained steadfast in their determination to free themselves from decades of Zionist occupation, persecution and terrorism.
Hamas and other resistance groups in Gaza and across the region are committed to the ceasefire deal but are aware that as in previous arrangements, Israel has the propensity to undermine it.
But the world is watching and aware of the dirty tricks Israel is capable of to derail the deal and blame Hamas.
Iqbal Jassat is an executive member of Media Review Network, Johannesburg, South Africa.
(The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Press TV)