Gaza rises to victory by smashing Israeli diktats into smithereens

By Ahmad Karakira
Source: Al Mayadeen English
17 May 2023 00:06
2 Shares

Al Mayadeen analyst for Arab and regional affairs says despite the great wounds as a result of the Israeli aggression, Gazans decided to maintain steadfastness.

On Saturday at 10:00 pm Al-Quds time, an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire between the Palestinian Resistance and the Israeli occupation took effect following a five-day Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which led to the martyrdom of 33 Palestinian and the injury of 100, in addition to huge material losses.

Immediately after the ceasefire was announced and took effect, Gazans took to the streets to celebrate victory in Operation Avenging the Free, which the Palestinian Resistance launched against the Israeli occupation in response to the latter's assassination of commanders and the brutal killing of civilians.

In conjunction with the celebrations, the Joint Operations Room of the Palestinian Resistance Factions in Gaza said Operation Avenging the Free is a new chapter of glory that the Resistance fought as a unified structure, warning that although the operation has ended, the banners of Resistance will not and shall not be lowered and the will to fight will not and shall not ever dwindle.

On his part, the Secretary-General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, Ziad Al-Nakhalah, said the Palestinian people, despite the pain, came out with their heads held high everywhere, in Gaza, the West Bank, and across the world, in support of the Resistance, describing these days as "days of honor and dignity for our people, who, with simple resources, are facing all this aggression."

One might wonder how the Palestinian Resistance and Gazans claimed a victory over the Israeli aggression, despite all the assassinations, killings, and destruction caused by the occupation.

Touching on the matter, Al Mayadeen analyst for Arab and regional affairs, Abdelrahman Nassar, pointed out that the main idea is to break the Israeli dictates, because "Israel's" goal behind the assassinations was to break the morale of the people.

Nassar explained that when Gazans witnessed the Resistance continuously bombing Israeli military sites, settlements, and cities and causing casualties among the Israelis until the last moment before the ceasefire entered into force, they considered the ceasefire a victory, steadfastness, and perseverance.

"Simply rejecting Israeli dictates in this way is a victory," Nassar told Al Mayadeen English.

The Palestinian analyst indicated that despite the great wounds, Gazans decided to remain steadfast for many reasons, the most important of which is that they do not like to display their suffering in front of the Israeli occupation, considering all the difficult circumstances they have been under as part of the ongoing 15-year blockade on the Strip.

An upcoming assassination at any moment

Asked about the reason why “Israel” launched its heinous aggression against Gaza at this particular time, Nassar considered that the decision on the timing of the aggression was taken in 2022. He cited an Israeli Channel 14 report as saying that the security establishment confirmed the aggression on Gaza was not a response to the firing of 104 rockets toward "Sderot" in retaliation to Sheikh Khader Adnan’s martyrdom in Israeli occupation prisons, but rather a settling of accounts with the PIJ for each rocket launched since the beginning of the year and the movement’s role in resistance operations in the occupied West Bank.

Nassar considered that "Israel's" concern is not the rocket firing from Gaza, since this matter is still unsolvable to the occupation, nor is it the PIJ's influential commanders, as there are similar influential leaders in other Palestinian factions. Rather, according to Nassar, "Israel's" problem is that the PIJ is at the forefront of the Resistance’s acts in the West Bank, and hence, the occupation tried to pressure the PIJ to prevent it from pursuing this progress. Therefore, the timing is just a factor related to on-the-ground conditions and is mainly linked to the occupied West Bank, he noted.

Nassar cited another reason for the aggression -- a political factor related to the internal Israeli crisis over the judicial overhaul.

According to Nassar, "Israel" also tried to create a rift between the Palestinian Resistance factions and failed miserably as coordination between the factions was apparent during the aggression, and this is another aspect that boosted the morale of the people.

However, Nassar believed that from the present moment, "Israel" will continue to focus on the PIJ, predicting an upcoming assassination at any moment or a coming battle this year or the following.

Resistance rockets put “Israel” under constant anxiety

Militarily, Al Mayadeen analyst for Arab and regional affairs acknowledged that it would be unfair to compare the capabilities of the Israeli occupation and those of the Palestinian Resistance.

Nevertheless, he pointed out that were it not for the Resistance's rockets, "the media would have broadcast the images of our martyrs, wounded, and destroyed homes from one side only, just as the situation was in 2010 and before."

"After 2012, when the Resistance began to put Israel under constant anxiety, the situation changed."

He added that despite the Resistance not being able to inflict huge casualties, Israeli settlers assert that they "love life" and disrupting their daily lives and spreading fear among them through rocket firing is enough in the meantime.

According to Nassar, the Israelis are infamous for keeping secret their casualties in all confrontations against Lebanon and Palestine, be they military or not.

Israeli media admits no solution to Gaza challenge

Touching on the Israeli media's feedback on the recent aggression, Nassar pointed out that the media will not attack the occupation army directly. He mentioned that the Israeli media praised the army's performance but criticized that of the political establishment. However, he noted that the media admitted that "Israel" has not been able to find a solution to the Gaza challenge.

Nassar had previously touched on the path that was followed to reach a ceasefire. He asserted that the Palestinian Resistance's position was clear from the beginning, which is that it will not end this round unless it forces the Israeli occupation to stop the assassinations and targeting of its leaders and the bombing of homes and civilians.