Light at the end of tunnel?

After two years of bloodbath, penury, hunger and destitution, Gaza seems to have spotted light at the end of the tunnel. 65,000 people, including more than 20,000 children, have perished in the war. US President Donald Trump announced on social media that Israel and Hamas had approved the first phase of the Gaza peace agreement. However, the timeline for implementing the agreement is unclear. According to Trump's post on 'Truth Social', all hostages will be released in the first phase. In addition, the Israeli army will withdraw to a certain border. Trump has stated that this will be the first step towards a stable and strong peace.

The peace agreement was brokered in Egypt by mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey. The war that continued for two years and two days after Israel launched a military operation in Gaza in response to a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, is thus finally seeing its curtains for good. In the attack by Hamas on the terrorising day on October 7th, 1,200 people were killed in Israel, and 251 taken hostage.

Israel chose to retaliate in a no-mercy approach that saw initial resistance from Hamas, but the outfit got completely decimated later. The war then became completely unilateral, with Israel calling the shots. This war in West Asia even raised concerns of the possibility of World War 3.

There are also reports that Hamas has asked the relevant countries and Trump to force Israel to fully comply with the terms of the agreement. Peace-loving people across the world are crossing their fingers to see the deal get signed in haste.

If the agreement is done, it will be interpreted as a great achievement for US President Trump.

The reconstruction and administration of Gaza, where houses, hospitals and schools have been almost destroyed, must now be given top priority. For this, all the rich countries of the world must ensure unstinted aid. Before anything, food and provisions should reach Gaza and the hunger-stricken children in the war-torn nation.

Israel has been blocking the entry of essential goods into Gaza since last March. There is a shortage of medicine, clean water, and fuel. Therefore, it is necessary to provide food and medicine to those living there in the first phase of the peace agreement. War is devastating as well as expensive. In any war, the innocent children, women, and other ordinary people will have to suffer for no wrong of theirs. When they cry, the world cries. Their ill fate and sudden plunge into darkness affect the whole world. Therefore, the world will wholeheartedly welcome the new move to broker peace with the hope of seeing smiles return on the faces of the children in Gaza.