It didn't take long for the Hamas Hokey Pokey to return. This time, the terrorists are dancing with the dead -- but Israel refuses to dance along with them.
The Wall Street Journal reported today on Hamas' lack of commitment to returning the remains of hostages that died in captivity or who were transported after being murdered in the October 7 massacre. Hamas released the living hostages under pressure from Donald Trump and the Israeli army, and also committed to the return of the dead. Shortly after the first exchange of four bodies, though, Hamas has basically shrugged its shoulders on producing any more of the remaining 24 murdered Israelis:
Israel wasn’t expecting all the bodies to be released, but many families were still hopeful that more would come home on Monday. Hamas had told mediators early on in the negotiations that it wouldn’t be able to meet a deadline for returning the bodies. The group had said it didn’t know where all the bodies were, something Israel believed to be true based on its own intelligence. Instead, Israel and the countries helping to mediate the talks agreed to set up an international task force to search for the remaining bodies.
Israelis on Monday celebrated what for many feels like the end of the war. But for the families who had hoped to close the final chapter of their ordeal, the release of only four bodies meant closure remained elusive.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, an advocacy group that represents captives’ families, called this a violation of the cease-fire agreement and called for “the immediate suspension of all agreement implementation” until all the remaining bodies are returned to Israel. A spokeswoman for the group later said it wasn’t calling for a return to the fighting, but for Hamas to be held accountable to meet its obligations as part of the agreement.
It didn't take long for the Israeli government to respond. The IDF will not return to offensive operations, the Jerusalem Post reported, but they aren't budging from their current positions either. Until Hamas meets its obligations under Trump's deal, the Rafah crossing will remain in Israeli control -- and that means aid will slow down significantly, too:
As part of the response to Hamas's refusal to release the remains, the Rafah Crossing will not open tomorrow and humanitarian aid will be dramatically reduced. Three Israeli officials confirmed the decision to Reuters.The defense establishment's recommendation was accepted by the Prime Minister at the last minute, according to several sources.
Egyptian teams are operating inside the Gaza Strip to recover the remains of Israeli hostages, sources told Qatar’s Al Araby TV on Tuesday. ...
Contrary to the hostage-ceasefire deal agreed upon by both Israel and Hamas, Hamas has not expressed a willingness to transfer any of the 24 remaining deceased hostages to Israel on Tuesday. At this stage, it is unclear when the next transfer of deceased hostages will take place.
According to assessments in the security establishment, Hamas is simultaneously trying to exert pressure on Israel to expedite the opening of the Rafah crossing in both directions, the import of construction materials and various goods that were previously banned, and the beginning of rebuilding infrastructure in the Gaza Strip.
Well, mirabile dictu, guess what Hamas just discovered after hearing this?
Hamas has informed mediators it will begin transferring the bodies of four deceased Israeli hostages to Israel at 10 p.m., an official involved in the operation tells Reuters.
This is a ghoulish form of the Hamas Hokey Pokey. They're dancing with the dead, hoping to wrest more concessions from Israel and Trump. Now that they have released the live hostages, this is the last bit of leverage they have, and they will drag this out as long as possible in order to play what few cards they still have left.
Time is running short, however. The arrangements for a post-Hamas Gaza continue apace, as the Times of Israel reports, with momentum building in Cairo. The "technocratic" council that the plan envisions has already been selected, and should take over Gaza from Hamas after the other phases of the agreement are completed:
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty told The Associated Press ahead of yesterday’s summit that 15 Palestinian technocrats have been selected to administer postwar Gaza.
He said their names were already vetted by Israel, without disclosing them. ...
He said Hamas members welcomed Trump’s plan. They “have no role in the transitional period. They are committed to that. That is why they are working on an administrative Palestinian committee to be deployed in order to take care of the daily life of the people of Gaza,” Abdelatty said.
As the Zen master said ... we'll see. Israel must think that these 15 Palestinians can operate without intimidation from Hamas, and maybe they can. Even if they succeed, though, Hamas will likely attempt to infiltrate the bureaucracies that will have to form underneath them. Western countries providing aid in the past never bothered to vet recipients for Hamas influence, or even outright Hamas membership. The UNRWA is a particularly odious example of this problem, and too many Western leaders want the UNRWA to return despite their clear record of collaboration in terrorism.
This time, Trump promises to take a tough line on Israeli security in Gaza. Will that be enough to ensure Hamas' exile? Perhaps the Sunni Arab countries will be better allies in this regard, given their antagonism to Iranian proxies in the region and their desire to create closer ties to Israel. At least for now, that gives a better chance against the Hamas Hokey Pokey than we've seen in twenty years.
Update: Trump weighed in on the issue on Truth Social:
Trump has motivation to paper over issues in order to sustain his deal. This demonstrates a firmness on Trump's part to force Hamas to comply with the deal to the letter. And why not? Trump got what he wanted out of the deal up front.
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