Opinion: In light of Riyadh summit, is Gaza Strip heading to darker future?

CAIRO – 23 May 2017: Ten years following Hamas’s control over the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian people in the conflict-torn area are more isolated and facing harsher restrictions; the situation is rapidly deteriorating.

President Donald Trump’s speech during the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh on Sunday, May 21, 2017 singled out Hamas and Hezbollah as terror organizations, listing them alongside with IS and Al-Qaeda. This was his first public address since taking office on January 20. “The true toll of IS, Al-Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas and so many others must be counted not only in the number of dead, but in generations of vanished dreams," he said.

Hamas rejected Trump's comments, saying it shows his "complete bias" towards Israel and a confirmation that he is following the policy of the previous U.S. administrations. In a statement on Sunday following the Riyadh summit, Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum said, “The statement describing Hamas as a terror group is rejected, and is a distortion of our image, and shows a complete bias to the Zionist occupation."

In light of Trump’s classification, the future of the exhausted Gaza Strip seems darker than before. In May, Hamas released an updated version of its founding charter. This could be seen as an attempt to gain international acceptance and compete in the Palestinian political scene. Moreover, Hamas, for the first time, recognized the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in its document as a legitimate representative of the Palestinians.

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are still paying the high price of internal defragmentation, conflict over governance, and political tensions between the two pillars, Fatah and Hamas.

The root cause of the deteriorating situation in Palestine, especially in the Gaza Strip, is with no doubt the Israeli occupation. No Palestinian can budge from this idea. However, the internal Palestinian fragmentation exacerbated the situation and weakened the Palestinian position. It also decreased the level of received Arabic and international support, which does not serve the cause by any means.

The repressive policies by Hamas in the Gaza Strip have increased the level of frustration among Palestinians. These policies include prosecution of journalists and imposing restrictions on the freedom of expression, even on social media platforms. Hamas’s policies are not only limited to these actions, but also include preventing Fatah leaders from crossing to the West Bank. They have taken control over the political scene through forming an administrative committee to manage Gaza and government institutions.

This committee was formed after accusations to the 2014 consensus government of failing to fulfill its responsibilities toward Gaza. In addition, Hamas has prevented the local election in the Gaza Strip and boycotted the process in the West Bank. These actions represent major setbacks to the reconciliation efforts and the institutionalization of the political fragmentation. Hamas is paving the way for the full separation of the Gaza Strip from the West Bank which serves the Israeli agenda to deepen the fragmentation among the Palestinians.

The inhabitants of the Gaza Strip are also victims of some practices by the authority in Ramallah. An example of these practices includes the pay cuts that were applied in the past two months. The authority in Ramallah, represented by Mahmoud Abbas, is still making a bet on a popular revolution in the Gaza Strip to face the oppressive rule of Hamas. The Palestinian authority has adopted a dangerous approach as any confrontation with the only armed party controlling the Strip would lead to blood baths and worsen the social fragmentation.

Nearly two-million people in the Gaza Strip are being used as hostages by Hamas to achieve political interests that are only related to the desire to control and to power.

Hamas has promoted itself as the guardian of the “Palestinian Resistance Project” and denied the history of all other Palestinian parties. For years, many Palestinians believed in Hamas and its ability to realize their dreams of independence, freedom and return. The reality is exactly the opposite. For ten years, Palestinians have not witnessed the return of an inch of the occupied Palestinian land, contrary to what Hamas promotes.

Palestinians in Gaza have survived three bloody wars that demolished homes, bulldozed lands, displaced families, killed and injured people, and increased poverty and unemployment rates. Furthermore, after these wars, Israel limited the allowed fishing areas at the Gaza sea, and widened the buffer zone areas (know as access restricted areas) between the Gaza Strip and Israel which negatively impacts the dedicated area for agriculture.

After each war, Hamas would declare a win and praise Gaza’s people’s resilience; the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties. The definition indicates the ability to “choose”, but that is not the case in the Gaza Strip. People do not have another choice but to pretend to be leading a normal life despite the inhumane conditions they are going through.

Turkey, Iran and Qatar stances on Hamas will be affected by the Riyadh summit declaration on Sunday. The final statement of the summit declared a commitment between the attending countries to face terrorism and to confront Iran’s disruptive actions in the region.

The Qatari ambassador, Mohammed Al-Emadi, visited the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, May 19, and witnessed the effects of the electricity cut crisis on all aspects of life; a crisis that the special coordinator for the Middle East peace process warned about in his statement on April 19. Unlike previous positions of Qatar to provide the necessary financial assistance that ends the repeated electricity crisis in Gaza, Emadi only commented that the Gaza Strip is heading towards a "black" phase. Qatar had a different policy before the Riyadh summit which cannot continue after, as Qatar cannot jeopardize being separated from the rest of the Gulf countries, and now to be opposing the United States.

As for Iran, who is now facing an announced Arab Islamic American alliance, would be put under pressure and forced to face this alliance; a situation that would result in leaving Hamas with no financial support and would definitely affect its arming. As a result, an Israeli short-term military war might be launched on Gaza while all other parties are busy with Iran, given that Trump would not succeed in resuming the peace negotiations between Abbas and Netanyahu. If the talks resume, the possibility that Hamas would fire rockets towards Israel to tremble the scene is not impossible.

I did not expect the Riyadh summit to present any proposals on the Palestinian cause. However, the speech of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi included a firm statement that one of the approaches to fight terrorism in the region is to find a just solution to the Palestinian issue. This perspective and approach should be adopted to draw attention to the role the Palestinian cause plays in bringing security and stability to the region.

Currently, all what Palestinians need is unification and a sincere reconciliation that puts their benefits on top; a reconciliation that is not subject to directives from Turkey, Iran, or Qatar. Palestinians need a reconciliation to rescue the Gaza Strip from serving the regional agenda of some countries and serving as a theater for great power tensions.

Palestinians also seek a clear political vision of the future in their homeland. This includes commencing talks between the Palestinian parties to resolve the outstanding internal issues. In addition, there is an urgency to implement interventions at the community level to restore the cohesion of the Palestinian social fabric and restore confidence between people and the political parties. The Palestinian people have the right to live their lives in dignity.

The Palestinian cause is facing a historical threat. It has become a forgotten humanitarian crisis in the international agenda, especially in light of the current developments in the region. It is time to combine all efforts to the legitimate right of Palestinians to live freely and in dignity in their own country; to live united and undivided.