The war between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas has stopped due to the intervention of Donald Trump. Now things are happening step by step. The Israeli army has retreated. The hostages have been returned. Before Gaza can be rebuilt, Hamas will have to give up its weapons. This is the problem. The group, which has tasted power and strength, does not seem to be easily ready for this.
This is being compared to the Friday Agreement in Ireland, when a militant organization took a decade to disarm.
Why is this discussion happening?
A few weeks ago, when US President Trump announced his 20 point Gaza When the peace plan was presented, many experts said that it reflected an old deal of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair – the Good Friday Agreement. This agreement was signed in the year 1998, which marked the beginning of ending the violent conflicts that had been going on for nearly 30 years in Northern Ireland.
According to a report by Politico, there are many things in Trump’s plan that either seem to be taken from or inspired by the Good Friday Agreement, especially the issue of giving up weapons.
what happened in ireland
There was conflict in its northern part from the late sixties till 1998. There was so much carnage in this that it was called The Troubles. This conflict was due to both religious and political reasons. On one side were Catholic Irish nationalists, who wanted Northern Ireland to separate from Britain and become part of the Republic of Ireland. On the other side were the Protestant Unionists, who wanted to stay with Britain. The conflict gradually turned into a violent rebellion.
This is where the Irish Republican Army (IRA) came into play. He started attacking the British army and police. More than three and a half thousand people died in the conflict and thousands were injured.
Tension continues even after agreement
After many attempts, finally in the late nineties the parties of Britain, Ireland and Northern Ireland together signed the Good Friday Agreement. On the surface there was peace but it took almost a decade for the IRA to lay down their arms. In fact, he was afraid that once he was disarmed, the enemy forces might betray him. This would have left their political demands unfulfilled. Therefore, he first wanted to see whether the Good Friday Agreement was actually being implemented or not.
The second reason was the anger of the party fighters and supporters. Thousands of people were killed in three decades of violence. The group was not ready to accept that the fight was over. For them, giving up weapons meant retreating from their objective.
They continued to commit sporadic violence. During this time, the governments of Britain and Ireland started giving concrete shape to the Good Friday Agreement.
– Captured IAA fighters were released.
– British troops were removed from Ireland.
– The political wing of the party got a place in politics.
– There was also international monitoring to ensure that the weapons were being destroyed. This reassured both sides.
Like Northern Ireland, there are fears that Hamas Living in the same fear, he will not be able to give up his weapon quickly. The first phase, which included the exchange of prisoners and hostages, is almost complete. Now is the second step. This is where Hamas and its allied groups have to give up their weapons. This is considered to be the most difficult part.
After this, Hamas will also have to distance itself from politics. Many old groups have come into power vacuum and are strengthening their claim on the Gaza Strip. Hamas started attacking all those groups. It is clear that he wants to remain in power. Till now, whatever action has been taken to give up weapons has been very limited.
Why won’t Hamas disarm easily?
– Weapons are his greatest strength. Due to this, he was maintaining a hold in politics till now.
– He suspects that if he gives up his weapons, Israel or anti-Palestinian groups could harm him.
– There are many different factions within Hamas, which have different opinions regarding weapons.
– Till now it is not clear to which country those who do not lay down their arms will be sent.
To whom will he hand over the weapons?
There is also a problem that to whom should Hamas hand over its weapons? He obviously cannot trust Israel or America either. In such a situation, the easiest way is for the organization to hand over its weapons to the international peacekeeping force, that too with a written agreement. Talks on this are also going on, but it is certain that this process will be long and full of challenges.
—- End —-
