Washington’s Gaza effort sets harsh conditions

The United States revised the language in a draft United Nations Security Council resolution on Tuesday to back “an immediate cease-fire of roughly six weeks in Gaza together with the release of all hostages”, according to a Reuters report.

Compared to earlier occasions when it successively vetoed three draft resolutions in the UN Security Council, two of which called for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, the US’ latest move is undoubtedly progress. With the number of Palestinian casualties from Israeli attacks in the latest round of conflicts in Gaza having reached 30,534 on Monday, as stated in a Xinhua report quoting a Hamas-run Health Ministry source, an immediate cease-fire in the region cannot be more urgent to prevent more bloodshed, something politicians in Washington finally seem to have recognized.

Yet the condition set by the US on the cease-fire is rather harsh, as the hatred between the people trapped in Gaza and Israel is still deep, making it very difficult for the release of all hostages. It would require the US, which has a huge influence on Israel, to make more efforts. Having aided Israel militarily for decades, the amount being as high as $3.6 billion over the past few months, the US doubtlessly has the highest persuasive power, among all foreign countries, to convince it to agree to a cease-fire.

Besides, the US, as the world’s only superpower, is also in a position to work together with the Palestinian side for an early cease-fire. On Feb 29, Hamas and Fatah met in Moscow, which, in the words of Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki, “should be followed by other meetings in the region soon”.

All the meetings at such a critical time should be working toward peace in the region, which is the shared goal of all the peace-loving people of the world. The US has recognized this and joined the chorus calling for peace. But lasting peace in Palestine can only be possible with the full, effective implementation of the two-state solution that will allow Palestinians to live in their homes. Otherwise, a temporary cease-fire will only serve as a prelude to another round of conflicts in the future.