All the nations are waiting to see what Hamas will do on Israel’s offer. They offer to pause fighting in exchange for releasing some hostages. This offer creates hope that it may be the sign of peace. The U.S. called Israel’s offer “extraordinarily generous,” and many people hope it could lead to a permanent end to the conflict.

While this is happening, the U.S. is asking Israel to cancel its plans to invade Rafah, the last area in Gaza still controlled by Hamas. The International Criminal Court is also thinking about issuing arrest warrants for Israeli leaders because of their military actions after the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust.

All of this, along with the growing number of violent and chaotic protests against Israel on American college campuses, and the generally weak response from university officials, might make people forget that Israel’s war with Hamas started because Hamas brutally attacked and took hostages on October 7.

There is a tough situation for Israel leaders. This is because they have to save the lives of their residents and protect themselves from future attacks. On the other hand, the whole globe blames Israel for violence it has faced since last year. And expects it to meet high humanitarian standards even when defending itself.

For those wanting peace in Gaza, it’s important to remember that this war is like most others: one side attacked, and the other fought back. To really achieve lasting peace, both sides need to decide to stop fighting. Pushing Israel to make peace while not asking anything of Hamas only encourages the terrorist group to regroup, rearm, and plan more attacks.

In order to want the true peace from both sides, Israel and Palestinians, the peace activists should at least ask Hama to do the following: 

1. Hamas should stop using terror

Inorder to understand the plans of Hamas it is important to just focus on the leaders saying. They said that their attack on October 7, where they crossed the border and killed Jews, showed that Israel could be defeated. They called it a “small example of the final war to make Zionist Israel disappear.”

If you think Hamas cares about the 2.1 million Palestinians in Gaza, listen to them again. They said they would keep doing attacks like October 7 as many times as it takes to “destroy” Israel, and Palestinians should be ready to “sacrifice” for the cause.

Meanwhile, Hamas is still firing rockets at Israel, both from Gaza and Lebanon. These attacks target both soldiers and regular people, but there’s not much global outrage about them. Because of this, Hamas doesn’t feel much pressure to stop, even though it started this war half a year ago.

2. Release the hostage.

According to the report there are about 133 hostages that Hamas holds in its dark tank.  According to the report, almost 1200 Israelis were killed badly on October 7. All those whom Hamas released during a previous pause in fighting. The hostage in Hamas still faces physical and sexual abuses. 

The hostage agreement that Hamas is considering involves releasing hostages in stages while Israel withdraws troops from certain parts of Gaza to allow for humanitarian aid and the return of Palestinians to their homes. However, those who are pushing Israel to halt its military response should also insist, with the same intensity, that Hamas release all hostages immediately.

3. Permit humanitarian aid to reach those in need

According to Jose Andres: “We need Israeli forces to keep their promise to let humanitarian organizations do their work. 

It is important that if humanitarian aid reach to Paleatine, then Hamas is also eligible for it.  In an interview of Ramzi Awda, who is against Israel :” Hamas steals “over 60 to 70 percent” of aid and resells it to Palestinians “at high prices.”

Additionally, when unknown militants attacked a pier that the U.S. was building to facilitate humanitarian aid to Gaza, a senior Hamas official said they would consider any U.S., Israeli, or other non-Palestinian force guarding the pier as an “occupying force.”