SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 8 February 2025, Saturday |

Netanyahu’s intention to continue war ‘clear since the beginning’

Luciano Zaccara, associate professor of Gulf politics at Qatar University, says it was always Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to restart military operations in Gaza.

Whether a return to all-out war can be avoided is now the crucial question, Zaccara told Al Jazeera.

“The intention of Netanyahu has been clear since the very beginning, that he wants to eliminate Hamas. So the question was what would happen as soon as all the hostages were released? If the objective is to eliminate Hamas, once all the hostages are finally released they would resume attacks,” Zaccara said.

“I had the expectation that this truce could be extended for a while. At least to show that Israel has some political will to appease the situation,” he said.

“It all depends on how, today, Blinken, Qatar and other stakeholders are pressuring Israel and Hamas at least to not start a full-fledged war. We are witnessing now that they are starting to launch rockets and retaliation from the Israeli side. So it depends on the coming few hours to see if there is hope at least to not see a full-fledged war.”

    Source:
  • Aljazeera