Israel-Hamas war: What will it take for a ceasefire in Gaza?
With Israel's war with Hamas approaching its second month, Yahoo News looks at the cases for and against a ceasefire in Gaza.
What's happening? The conflict between Israel and Hamas has been escalating for a month now, with the death toll in Gaza passing 10,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Israel launched its offensive on the Palestinian enclave in response to a surprise attack by Hamas on 7 October, which saw 1,400 Israelis killed.
Many charities, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and leaders in the international community have strengthened calls for a ceasefire as civilian casualties continue to mount rapidly.
Those who have survived are in the midst of a humanitarian crisis, as an Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip leaves civilians struggling to access food, water, medicines and other essential supplies.
However, with more than 200 people captured and taken hostage during Hamas's attack, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have shown no sign of backing down and are instead stepping up their offensive.
Read more: Israel Latest: Military Intensifies Assault, Isolating Gaza City (Bloomberg News)
Here, Yahoo News takes a look at who is in support of a ceasefire, who is opposed to one, and why the debate has been so divisive.
What is a ceasefire?
According to the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, a ceasefire is an agreement that normally features detailed provisions on elements such as objectives, timelines, security arrangements, and monitoring and verification mechanisms of any laying down of arms.
A ceasefire is also expected to state the date and time at which it should start, plus define where it should be applied and what military and non-military activities will be permitted or not permitted.
Gaza ceasefire: the arguments for
The sheer scale of the human suffering unfolding in Gaza has prompted many leaders, governments, charities and other organisations to call for an immediate ceasefire in the enclave.
In a rare joint statement on Sunday, leaders of 18 United Nations agencies and NGOs said: "An entire population is besieged and under attack, denied access to the essentials for survival, bombed in their homes, shelters, hospitals and places of worship... It's been 30 days. Enough is enough."
It followed a UN General Assembly resolution calling for a ceasefire – introduced by Jordan – which was backed by an overwhelming majority of 120 countries including France, Ireland, Spain and Switzerland. The UK abstained, while the US was among 14 countries which voted against.
Many prominent British political figures have also urged a ceasefire including nearly a third of Labour MPs and Scotland's first minister Humza Yousaf, who has said: “All we are doing now without a ceasefire is exacerbating that trauma.”
Much of the UK public feels very strongly about this issue, with tens of thousands of people marching in support of Palestine through London on consecutive weekends. A recent YouGov poll found 76% of people wanted an ceasefire.
In the US, Delia Ramirez, a Democratic congresswoman from Illinois who recently signed a "ceasefire now" resolution, said bombing Gaza is "not going to bring the hostages back safely".
Meanwhile a number of Arab leaders clashed with the US as they called for a ceasefire, with Jordan’s foreign minister Ayman Safadi warning: “The whole region is sinking in a sea of hatred that will define generations to come.”
Amnesty International, Save the Children and Doctors Without Borders are among the prominent charities calling for a ceasefire, with the latter saying the conflict has reached "a new low in an endless stream of unconscionable violence".
Gaza ceasefire: the arguments against
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been very clear about his opposition to a ceasefire, telling crews at an air force base on Sunday: "There will be no ceasefire without the return of the hostages. This should be completely removed from the lexicon.
"We say this to our friends and to our enemies. We will simply continue until we defeat them. We have no alternative."
The US government, Israel's most powerful ally, has also dismissed the idea of a ceasefire despite pressure from allies in the Arab world, with secretary of state Antony Blinken arguing a ceasefire would allow Hamas to "regroup and repeat" an attack on Israel.
UK prime minister Rishi Sunak has taken a similar stance, arguing it would be "untenable" for Israel not to "go after those [Hamas] terrorists".
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has also rejected the idea of a ceasefire – despite significant pressure from within his own party – claiming such a move would "freeze the conflict" and allow Hamas to launch future attacks.
The US, Sunak and Starmer have, however, thrown their support behind temporary "humanitarian pauses" to allow the delivery of aid to the region.
What is the likelihood of a ceasefire?
A route towards a ceasefire appears to be at an impasse.
A top Hamas official told NBC on Thursday that the Islamist group was open to a "complete compromise" deal to free all hostages, but only in exchange for the release of all Palestinian prisoners being held in Israel – an offer Israel is unlikely to ever accept.
In fact, Palestinian officials have said that in the first two weeks following the 7 October attacks, Israel doubled the number of Palestinians in its custody from 5,200 to more than 10,000, AlJazeera reported.
Netanyahu has said on multiple occasions that Israel won't stop attacking targets in Gaza until Hamas is "destroyed", while as mentioned, many believe Hamas will attack again and continue the cycle of violence.
Ghazi Hamad, a senior member of Hamas, told Lebanese TV channel LBC on 24 October that Israel's existence is "illogical" and that there will be "a second, a third, a fourth" version of 7 October.
“We must remove it because it constitutes a security, military and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation. We are not ashamed to say this,” he added.
If a ceasefire were to happen, the US, Jordan and other regional powers in the Arab world are likely to play a big role, but currently the chance of a deal being reached is looking slim.
