The major conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip has been fairly reducing in recent days. Still, the conflict remains far from being given a proper conclusion.
The Israeli Prime Minister has, in his statement, declared that the existing military campaign, which concentrates on attacks on the city of Rafah, will be the final large-scale ground operation in Gaza for some time shortly.
Hamas, in turn, says it managed to strike an Israeli base and kill seven soldiers, while the Israeli military says it has weakened three out of four remaining Hamas battalions, which was one of its goals.
However, Palestinians are killed: each day, up to 40-60 civilians are killed due to the Israeli bombings. The Israeli defense minister has mentioned the presence of what he calls ‘Phase C,’ in which the intensity of the operation is somewhat below that of full-fledged warfare but above that of training, to his American counterparts and also pointed to the increase of tension on Lebanon- Israel border.
Thus, if the full-blow war was not stopped, it means that none of the sides, both Israel and Hamas, have fully accepted the ceasefire proposal.
At the same time, prospects for a long-term truce, prisoner exchange, and rebuilding of the Gaza Strip remain very uncertain. Even the Israeli military has realized apparently that exterminating Hamas is impossible because this is an idea whose time has come in Palestine.
Thus, while the immediate warfare remains less vicious but more prolonged in comparison to the previous three Palestinian wars, Gaza still seems to remain in agony.
