Gaza war: Two years after Hamas attack, talks raise hopes

THE start of US-brokered talks in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh has raised hopes worldwide that the two-year-old Gaza war will finally come to a halt. The war was triggered by the stunning attacks carried out by Hamas-led militants on Israeli soil on October 7, 2023. About 1,200 people, mostly Israeli civilians, were killed and around 250 taken hostage in what was described as the bloodiest day for Jews since the Holocaust. The no-holds-barred Israeli retaliation has snuffed out the lives of over 67,000 Palestinians, mainly civilians, even as the majority of the 2.2 million Gazans have been left homeless and hungry. Senior independent investigators appointed by the UN Human Rights Council concluded recently that Israel's actions in Gaza constituted genocide.

Israel and Hamas have agreed to parts of the 20-point plan proposed by US President Donald Trump. This is expected to facilitate early release of hostages. However, a contentious point — disarmament of Hamas and its exclusion from governance in Gaza — might impact the outcome of the talks. India has been quick to laud Trump's plan as a “viable pathway to long-term and sustainable peace, security and development for the Palestinian and Israeli people” Delhi's proactive response is in stark contrast to its repeated abstention from voting on Gaza ceasefire-related UN resolutions in recent years. It was only last month that India voted in favour of a UN resolution endorsing the New York Declaration on the peaceful settlement of the Palestinian issue and implementation of the two-state solution. An important shift was also witnessed when PM Narendra Modi condemned the September 9 airstrikes on Qatar, though he stopped short of naming the aggressor, Israel.

The PM's support to Trump’s plan is apparently also an attempt to put India-US ties back on track. And Delhi has by and large played it safe with regard to Israel, which had strongly backed India’s right to defend itself against terrorism after the Pahalgam attack. India is hoping that its tightrope walk in West Asia will bring dividends, as and when peace is restored in the troubled region.