President Donald Trump, standing beside Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, announced Monday a 20-point plan for ending the Israel-Hamas war, now nearing its second year, and bringing peace to the war-torn, Gaza Strip.
Sharing his views about the peace plan on the “Washington Watch” program, Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC) said one portion of the deal troubles him greatly -- the agreement that calls for Israel to release Hamas terrorists, 250 in all, who are currently serving life sentences for attacks in Israel.
“Israel has done that before. It has not worked out well for them,” Harrigan, referring to previous prisoner releases, told show host Tony Perkins.
The modern-day Gaza Strip has been controlled by Hamas since 2007, when it defeated political rival Palestinian Authority in elections there.
Just two years earlier, in 2005, Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon handed over the area when he withdrew the military and evacuated 10,000 Jews from 21 settlements. That agreement, known as the Gaza Disengagement Plan, was approved by the Knesset in a bid to improve relations with the Palestinians and bolster Israel's international standing.
Hamas faced with peace proposal
With reports Hamas is balking at the new peace plan, retired U.S. Navy commander Kirk Lippold says peace requires Israel's enemies to make two concessions.
"One, Israel has a right to exist," he stresses. "Two, they have a right to live in peace with their neighbors."
Gary Bauer similarly tells AFN terrorist groups always turn down a peace deal.
"That's why they're terrorist groups," he says. "They really don't want a two-state solution. As we have said over and over, they want a one-state solution."
Citing Rep. Harrigan's military experience in U.S. Special Forces in Afghanistan, Perkins asked the lawmaker if Israel can achieve peace in Gaza if Hamas terrorists are still alive to wage war.
“I’m very doubtful,” Tony,” Harrigan replied, citing the release of Hamas terrorists as one reason why.
“My concern over this deal is that it's long on hope, very short on assurances, from a political (and) military perspective,” the congressman added.
As part of the peace plan, Israel will withdraw its military from Gaza but Hamas will be excluded from holding government positions in what is described as Gaza’s transformation to a peaceful neighbor.
The territory of Gaza has witnessed an ongoing military offensive by the IDF after Hamas launched its Oct. 7 attack in northern Israel two years ago.
That well-planned attack, called “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” by Hamas, caught the Israelis by surprise during the final day of Sukkot, a Jewish festival. After breaching the Gaza-Israel border, Hamas killed approximately 1,200 Israelis and took another 250 Jews back to Gaza as hostages.
In its two-year war against Hamas, the IDF launched an attack in and around Gaza City in recent weeks in what it called a final offensive to end Hamas’s military and political control in Gaza.
