Fadia Jumaa

Bayrut - Beirut: Amid ongoing international efforts to establish a ceasefire in Gaza, a “day-after” plan has been proposed to outline the next phase. However, it faces widespread rejection due to the lack of Palestinian and international consensus on Gaza’s future. Meanwhile, Egypt, Qatar, and the United States continue mediation efforts to activate the truce agreement, amid warnings that any setback could reignite the conflict.

Lebanon, for its part, is directly affected by the war through border tensions, and indirectly through public and political pressure in solidarity with Gaza. Despite Hamas’ declaration of its commitment to halt escalation in the north, fears remain high given Lebanon’s fragile internal situation and the overlapping regional dynamics.

Al-Hamouch considers what is being called a “truce” in Gaza nothing more than a cosmetic attempt to mask a political and military crisis, reflecting the complexities of the confrontation between the U.S.–Israeli alliance and the rest of the world amid growing condemnations of the ongoing massacres and acts of genocide.

She explained that this alliance “has reached dead ends, forcing it to seek a temporary way out, especially after failing to retrieve the captives through military means and resorting to negotiations—particularly following the failure of attempts to target Hamas leaders and the disappointment in Qatari mediation.” She added that “the truce came as a tactical step to pass the prisoner exchange deal, paving the way for renewed escalation, which indeed resumed just a day after the truce was announced, under various pretexts.”

She emphasized that “the essence of the truce revolved around retrieving the captives, and in the end, the occupation accepted Hamas’ conditions, as the movement had insisted from the start that the exchange could only happen through negotiations.” She asked, “Is this a pause? Yes, as long as their slogan ‘from the river to the sea’ remains, they will not stop—especially since Netanyahu redefined the war and called it the ‘War of Resurrection,’ signaling its continuation.”

Al-Hamouch pointed out that the voices of victims’ families have once again echoed through the media, reaffirming that the war is far from over and that the genocide continues. She stressed that ongoing violations are nothing new for the enemy, who has long maneuvered between truces and escalations to maintain a façade before the world.

“A So-Called Truce Is a Fragile Cover for a War That Has Not Ended”
According to Al-Hamouch, what appears to be a truce in Gaza does not reflect a genuine reality that fulfills Palestinians’ basic rights but rather a fragile cover for a continuing battle. “The aid entering the Strip is looted and stolen and does not meet the needs of the population, who suffer from a severe economic crisis preventing them even from buying available goods.”

She considered the occupation’s concessions as “a result of the growing international recognition of the Palestinians’ right to establish their own state, forcing Israel to bow, albeit temporarily, to international law and UN resolutions.”

Al-Hamouch asserted that the challenges remain immense—Gaza’s crisis is not only material but also deeply psychological and social. The psychological effects of war, especially on children and women, exceed what aid or imposed political arrangements can repair, particularly amid the absence of recognition of Hamas as a political actor and the spread of collaborators threatening Palestinian unity.

She noted that Gaza’s political situation is complex, and its military reality even more so. The Palestinian society has not entered a real phase of calm but is rather living a transitional state that could lead to new bombings, negotiations, or tactical maneuvers. “What we are witnessing,” she said, “is not a ceasefire but a warrior’s pause in an open-ended battle, whose details—from the prisoners’ fate to the leadership’s future—remain shrouded in secrecy.”

The Battle Expands and Regional Settlement Is at Stake
The battle, Al-Hamouch explained, is not limited to Gaza—it stretches “from the sea to the river,” encompassing the West Bank, the Arab citizens of Israel (’48 Palestinians), Lebanon, Jordan, and even Sinai, where Egypt is mobilizing in anticipation of potential military intervention or an attempt to redraw the map through forced displacement of Gaza’s residents.

She pointed out that former U.S. President Donald Trump’s statements about “ample land in Jordan” reflect troubling intentions toward forced displacement, amid ongoing regional settlement projects that have yet to be concluded. “The current scene,” she said, “has gone beyond the regional framework to become a global battleground where the interests of major powers—such as China, Russia, North Korea, and European countries—intersect in confrontation with the U.S.–Israeli alliance, led by Trump, which is suffering heavy losses.”

Lebanon at a Crossroads
Regarding Lebanon’s role in this critical stage, Al-Hamouch said: “Its role lies in fortifying itself from within- through the state and its citizens—and silencing the traitorous voices that erode the wounded nation’s body, which coexists under a fragile sectarian system.” She stressed that Lebanese unity must manifest around resistance, viewing it as a legitimate right to defend the land, not as an extension of Iran, France, or Israel.

“This choice,” she added, “is not merely a political stance but an existential necessity, because the alternative is slipping into American and Zionist domination—whether through normalization or neutrality or other tools of control.” She underscored that this moment requires real unity, for “those who are not united today will not be part of the nation’s fabric tomorrow.”

She emphasized that protecting civilians in southern Lebanon begins by safeguarding the spirit of resistance. “For us,” she said, “resistance is not a choice but an identity rooted in the soil of Jabal Amel and the blood of martyrs. Lebanese revolutionaries will always stand against occupation and corruption, at home and abroad. Their unity and their arms must remain one, for true protection arises from internal revolution that preserves Lebanon’s resistant face against the Zionist project.”

Reconstruction as a Right and Resilience as Identity
Al-Hamouch believes that justice and peace, like war, have become regional and global issues, and that Lebanon- especially the south- constitutes a constant arena of struggle. Once known as the “Switzerland of the East,” it has now turned into a “militant Switzerland of the East.” She asserted that Lebanon has never been just an internal arena but a field for global and regional confrontations, making its reconstruction a national and pan-Arab necessity.

She stressed that support for Gaza was nothing but standing with the oppressed against the oppressor—a moral position that cannot be abandoned. Rebuilding the south, she said, is a natural right for its people, and delays in that process are linked to stalled negotiations and military-security conditions. “The reconstruction file,” she added, “is being used as a pressure card against residents, the government, and the resistance, as part of efforts to empty the south of its people.”

Despite the tragedies, she affirmed that southerners continue to return to their homes, plant olive trees, and educate their children in tents and makeshift shelters, embodying daily perseverance: “Those who possess the right never abandon it—especially the people of the south, whose lives are woven with patience and resistance.”

New Variables Disrupt the Balance and Redraw the Conflict
Al-Hamouch explained that the Lebanese and Gazan fronts are no longer separate—they are part of a broader regional equation that includes Yemen and Iraq, intertwined with Iran’s negotiations and policies in the region. “The battle,” she said, “is no longer local but regional and international—fought on land, sea, and air. Pressure will continue until a comprehensive truce covers the entire region. The outcome depends on the steadfastness and resilience of the resistance.”
She predicted that any future confrontation will bring radical changes in the balance of power, with new strategic cards being used for the first time—moves that could confuse and alarm Israel. Regarding the ongoing displacement, she described it as “the inevitable price of the Zionist entity’s existence.”

Women at the Heart of the Struggle
Al-Hamouch emphasized that women in southern Lebanon, across the Arab world, and particularly in Palestine, are not merely social figures but the core of the revolution and its living symbol. The struggling woman, she said, has endured hardship without abandoning her rights; her condition mirrors that of the land and the nation—she stands at the heart of the battle, not on its margins.
She highlighted that women in Lebanon and Palestine have played an active media role in the struggle- appearing on frontlines, facing danger, hunger, disease, and violence. Their role, she stressed, has not been limited to defending the cause but also to supporting it across all levels.

She recalled scenes of women from around the world who joined flotillas to break the Gaza siege, standing up to Israeli forces despite not belonging to that land- “so what, then, of the people of the land themselves, who are nurtured on olive trees, figs, and the rifle of justice?”

In conclusion, Al-Hamouch said: “The women of this land are not only partners in the struggle- they are born from the womb of a nation that still resists and continues to offer examples of heroism and dignity in the face of oppression and colonialism.”