'No alternative. Hamas is Gaza, and Gaza is Hamas': Israeli media

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen English + Israeli media
30 Jan 2025 23:08

Israeli media and analysts express their fears and worries regarding Hamas' dismissal of the occupation's demands throughout the prisoner swap demonstrations.

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Hamas fighters arrive in a pick-up truck at the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza City, Thursday, January 30, 2025. (AP)

Israeli anger and concerns emerged when Hamas documented its prisoner exchanges in a manner that suited it, dismissing the occupation's demands that it withdraw its forces and elements, while also disregarding a key Israeli demand to withhold the deployment of police officers throughout the Gaza Strip.

Yossi Yehoshua, Yedioth Ahronoth's military analyst, said, "There is no authority alternative in Gaza; Gaza is Hamas, and Hamas is Gaza," adding that Donald Trump's plot to implement "voluntary evacuations" from Gaza must be considered in the absence of other solutions.

He also discussed the situation in the West Bank, saying it currently poses the greatest danger to Israelis.

"Tulkarm is one meter away from Kafaruna. They have organized battalions, like the Jenin Battalion and the Tulkarm Battalion. We wake up in the morning to a siren, which lasts for three or four hours, with a distance of no more than 3 km," Yehoshua stated, noting that the possibility of another October 7 is "dangerously tangible" in the West Bank.

'Israel' chose to submit, prisoner swap complete failure: Ben-Gvir

Israeli Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir criticized the scenes from Gaza on Thursday, saying, "The images coming from Gaza confirm that what has happened so far was not a complete victory but a complete failure."

Ben-Gvir further stated that "this prisoner exchange deal is unprecedented, and the Israeli government has chosen the path of submission," referring to the concessions made by the regime to secure the release of Israeli captives.

Meanwhile, the leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, Avigdor Lieberman, stated that "the images from Gaza prove that we must separate from it forever." Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also expressed concern, saying, "We are worried about the price we are paying for this deal, despite our joy at the return of the hostages."

These remarks came after footage showed large crowds gathering in Jabalia in northern Gaza and Khan Younis in the south, particularly near the home of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, as the Israeli captives were handed over.