INTERVIEW | Marcelo Masalleras on the two years since Hamas's attacks on Israel and Egypt's negotiations regarding Gaza

Regarding the negotiations taking place in Egypt to seek a ceasefire in the Gaza war and the two years since Hamas’s attacks on Israel, Andrea Rivera spoke with the senior researcher at AthenaLab, Marcelo Masalleras, in a new program of Doble Click.

Israel commemorated the second anniversary of the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, which initiated a war in Gaza, triggering a severe humanitarian crisis in the enclave. With 48 hostages still in captivity and amid growing international pressure regarding the actions of Israeli forces against Palestinians, the world watches with hope for a possible end to the prolonged conflict, thanks to the recent peace agreement proposed by the United States.

In various locations across Israel, small gatherings were held to commemorate those who lost their lives in the Hamas attack on Israeli territory. The Islamist group killed approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took another 250 hostage. This is considered one of the bloodiest days in the country’s history and the deadliest for Jews since the Holocaust. The event led to an unprecedented military operation in Gaza, under the mandate of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which has resulted in the deaths of over 67,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health.

In this context, the senior researcher at AthenaLab addressed the expectations of the international community regarding the negotiations mediated by Egypt and Qatar, stating that “this is the dilemma we face today. On one hand, there is obviously hope for achieving peace because this has been a very long war, the longest they have had between these two entities. A very bloody war, on both sides, a war that has caused much destruction, which has also pushed Israel to become isolated, as countries that have traditionally supported it have ended up recognizing the Palestinian state, such as the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, recently. Therefore, there is a lot of hope. A lot of hope, especially because there is no other solution on the horizon other than a political solution. It is very difficult to destroy a terrorist group solely through military means. So, there is a lot of hope. But there is also a lot of caution, and caution has several points. On one hand, the fragility; there are still ongoing combats. Therefore, we must be cautious, first, due to the difficulty of reaching an agreement.”