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Hamas Will Not Surrender Control over Gaza without Being Forced to Do So

(Telegraph-UK) Col. (ret.) Richard Kemp - Hamas's unremitting intransigence over hostage release and a temporary peace settlement has brought Israel to the point of renewing offensive operations against the remaining areas of Gaza it does not yet control. The only effective action against Hamas has come not from diplomacy but military force, which pressured them into surrendering many of the hostages. Hamas is not going to surrender its control over Gaza without being forced to do so. Israel is therefore left with no choice other than to press ahead and seize control over the rest of Gaza. Prime Minister Netanyahu has made it clear that, once Hamas is dealt with, he does not want Israel to remain in control of Gaza. In any case, nothing can be concluded until the war is won. Whatever arrangements are put in place, the IDF will have to maintain overall security control in critical defensive zones to prevent another Oct. 7. Threats of recognition of a Palestinian state, arms embargoes and other Western measures against Israel are not going to stop this offensive moving on to its final conclusion. The only thing that might is if this redoubled Israeli resolve causes Hamas to understand that the game is finally up. In this part of the world, it is not diplomacy or compromise that holds sway, but overwhelming strength. The writer, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, was chairman of the UK's national crisis management committee, COBRA.
2025-08-10 00:00:00
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