By Mike Bibb
"We affirm that the sacrifices of our people will not be in vain, and that we will remain true to our pledge — never abandoning our people's national rights until freedom, independence, and self-determination are achieved." — Statement from Hamas regarding the proposed peace treaty between Israel and Gaza, Oct. 9, 2025.
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Call me a skeptic, but I don't have much faith in the proposed Israel and Hamas peace accord. In my opinion, there's simply too much hatred between the two to really expect a lasting agreement.
That, and there's other forces at work who would like to see Israel pushed into the Mediterranean Sea.
Jewish, Arab and Muslim conflicts go back hundreds and hundreds of years. With each passing decade, things don't appear to be improving. Actually, tensions are intensifying.
The October 7, 2023 malicious attacks — by a neighboring Gaza outfit calling itself Hamas — on a Jewish musical festival in Israel, killed a thousand men, women and children. Over 200 were taken captive and tortured.
The assault was extremely brutal.
As expected, Israel retaliated into the Gaza Strip area and still continues to fight Hamas' resistance.
This conflict is merely the latest fisticuff between Jewish and Arab/Muslim forces.
Seems the guns of both sides barely cool from previous encounters when they suddenly begin firing again. Since the creation of Israel in 1948, there has been one war after another, to such an extent it's difficult to keep track.
Now, President Donald Trump has negotiated the "First phase" of a supposed agreement that will release some hostages and prisoners in Hamas in exchange for a cease fire.
The deal went into effect Thursday, at 9:00 a.m., Oct. 9, 2025.
But, from a statement by Hamas "that we will remain true to our pledge [of] never abandoning our people's national rights" seems a bit iffy, and certainly not a definitive endorsement of Trump's plan.
Kind of a "I've seen this movie before" scenario, where much hoopla and fanfare are given to a Jewish-Arab cease-fire compact only to witness a resumption of hostilities — in one form or another — not too long after.
Almost, as if there's so much bad-blood between the two that they can't help themselves from fighting and killing each other, generation after generation.
Been going on for centuries.
It's dubious any sort of mutual understanding will have leave a lasting impression among the warring parties.
Instead, as previously experienced, once the combatants have regrouped, reequipped and rededicated their cause to eradicating/defending each other, then the Oct. 9. 2025 cease-fire will go down as just the latest effort to stop the carnage.
However, these negotiations and compromises haggled over by Trump may be his ultimate "Art of the Deal" test so far.
If successful, can you hear chants of a "Nobel Prize"?
Probably not, that award will most likely go to someone who's extensively researched the peculiar mating habits of the Binary Three-toed Dart Whistler and its influence upon Climate Change in the Andaman Islands.
