This week, concerns rise of Israel-Gaza ceasefire deal collapsing. DRC church leaders call for peace and dialogue with rebels. Trump announces peace talks on Ukraine to start “immediately.”
Concerns Rise of Israel-Gaza Ceasefire Deal Collapsing
Concerns are rising about Israel and Gaza’s ceasefire deal collapsing. This news comes a month into the ceasefire, with Hamas having released 16 out of 33 hostages from Gaza, and Israel having released 656 Palestinians out of a list of 2,000.
On February 10, Hamas said it would delay plans for a further hostage release set for February 15 “until further notice,” after accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire. Military spokesman for Hamas’s Al Qassam Brigades Abu Obeida accused Israel of, “delaying the return of the displaced to the northern Gaza Strip, targeting them with shelling and gunfire in various areas of the strip, and not allowing relief supplies of all kinds to enter as agreed upon.”
In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on February 11 said that if Hamas does not release the hostages on Saturday as planned, the ceasefire would end.
This development comes as Jordan’s King Abdullah on February 11 rejected US President Donald Trump’s statements calling for the US to control Gaza, and to resettle Palestinians to other countries.
It remains to be seen whether the fragile ceasefire will prevail.
DRC Church Leaders Call for Peace and Dialogue With Rebels
Church leaders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are calling for peace and dialogue following the takeover of Goma by M23 rebels. On February 12, two of DRC’s largest church organizations met with M23 leader Corneille Nangaa in Goma. These organizations were the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO) and the Church of Christ in Congo (ECC).
Bishop Donatien Nshole, secretary-general of CENCO, said after the meeting that the meeting was, “…an opportunity to … seek an end to the war as soon as possible, because we remain convinced that the solution to this crisis is not military,” as quoted in Associated Press.
Goma residents had mixed reactions to the meeting, with some expressing hope, and others saying the meeting was inadequate.
The Archbishop of Kinasha has also spoken out, saying that “Everyone must agree to sit around the same table and resolve their differences through dialogue, following the African tradition of discussion.”
This development comes after several heads of state and government gathered for an extraordinary joint regional summit between the heads of state of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on February 8. The leaders of the two sub-regional organizations called for “an immediate ceasefire and an end to the fighting.” To read Peace News Network (PNN)’s full report on the summit, click here.
Meanwhile, DRC President Félix Tshisekedi still rejects direct peace talks with M23. Following the Goma takeover on January 27, Tshisekedi, criticized the international community’s “silence and inaction.” Tshisekedi’s party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), has stood against the church leaders’ peace efforts, saying the leaders should have waited for an official stance from Tshisekedi.
Trump Announces Peace Talks on Ukraine to Start “Immediately”
US President Donald Trump announced this week that peace talks on Ukraine would start “immediately.” Trump made the announcement after holding phone calls with Russian President Vladimir and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Trump said he had had a “lengthy and highly productive” phone call with Vladimir Putin on February 12, and Zelensky later said that he spoke to Trump about a “lasting, reliable peace.”
Trump later said that he would “probably” meet with Putin in Saudi Arabia to “see if we can get something done.” Trump said that he chose Saudi Arabia as a meeting place due to he and Putin’s relationship with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia did not immediately comment about this, New York Times reported.
However, Zelensky has warned that no peace deal will be accepted by Ukraine without its involvement. Zelensky added that “Europeans needed to be at the negotiating table too,” and that his priority is “security guarantees,” which he does not see without US support.
Keywords: Peace, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, DRC, Congo, DR Congo, Ukraine, Russia, conflict, conflict resolution
Tara Abhasakun
Tara Abhasakun is a journalist in Bangkok. She has reported on a range of human rights issues involving youth protests in Thailand, as well as arts and culture. Tara's work has appeared in several outlets, including Al Jazeera and South China Morning Post.
