As fragile Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire takes hold, what’s next for Gaza?

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Nov. 28, 2024, 8:00 PM UTC

Fighting may appear to be winding down between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah, but it remains to be seen how the truce might affect Palestinians desperate for the war in Gaza to end, as well as some of the anguished families of hostages waiting for their loved ones’ return.

On a visit to the Czech Republic on Thursday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Israel would end the war in Gaza when it “achieves its objectives” of returning the hostages held by Hamas and ensuring the militant group no longer controls the enclave.

“Right now, it is very hard” to see a Palestinian partner for peace, Sa’ar said, before adding that “we believe that eventually peace is inevitable.”

Hamas , meanwhile, has said it is hopeful that any deal with Hezbollah would lead to the end of hostilities in the devastated Palestinian enclave. The group has not indicated that it has shifted from previous negotiating positions of accepting only a permanent ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as necessary precursors for releasing any more hostages.

The sense that a pause in fighting at the Lebanese border appears unlikely to spread south in the short term was shared by ordinary residents of Gaza.

Shattered buildings in Gaza City after an airstrike on the al-Qassam Mosque on Wednesday.Ali Jadallah / Anadolu via Getty Images

In the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, public relations employee Mohammed Nasser told an NBC News crew that he was trying to resolve his relief about Lebanon with the anxiety of what may still be to come closer to home.

“We had hoped that this agreement would be comprehensive and include the Gaza Strip, or at least a deal would be reached on a ceasefire and end the ongoing suffering here,” said Nasser, 40, who has been displaced from his home in northern Gaza.

“There are great concerns here in the Gaza Strip that the ceasefire in Lebanon will become a reason for expanding military operations here in the Gaza Strip,” he added.

According to local officials, more than 44,000 people have since been killed in Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which it launched in response to the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist … Read More