On April 2, Yahya Sinwar, the ruler of the Gaza Strip, threatened to “cut off the air to six million Zionists and take what we want from [them]”—presumably by overwhelming Israel with rocket fire—if his subjects were to face a shortage of medical supplies for treating coronavirus patients. But since then, something unprecedented has happened: complete quiet along Gaza’s border with Israel, with no attacks either by Hamas or by other groups. Eyal Zisser comments:
Israel is very worried about the possibility of a coronavirus outbreak among Gazans, since Israel sees itself and is seen by the world as responsible for what happens there—a harsh reminder to anyone who thought or wanted to believe that [it] actually “disengaged” back in 2005. But the specter of an outbreak is of even more concern to Hamas, whose leaders are very worried about how the pandemic could affect their status.
The economic crisis that emerged as a result of the pandemic is only making things in Gaza worse, a sort of straw that is breaking the Gaza camel’s back. The protests over rising unemployment, the cost of living, food shortages, and more are all directed against the ruling entity—Hamas.
As a result, tones have been moderated, and a white flag is being tentatively waved. [The head of Hamas’s] politburo, Ismail Haniyeh, [is now] talking about the coronavirus as a mutual strategic threat facing everyone, and a historic watershed moment that will allow for a deal with Israel. The most important issue for Israel is, of course, the return of the bodies of fallen Israeli soldiers and the release of the Israeli captives being held by Hamas.
[O]nce the issue of Israel’s fallen and captives is resolved, resolutions to many other issues can be reached. In the meantime, the Gaza border protests have stopped, as well as any intermittent rocket fire on southern Israel.
Read more on Israel Hayom: https://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/the-straw-that-broke-hamas-back/