Israeli security experts claim ‘bad deal’ with Hamas but ‘no other way’ to release hostages
What news Israel and Hamas have finally signed an agreement it was greeted with an international sigh of relief on Friday as it could mean the return of all remaining hostages long held in unconscionable conditions, as well as an end to the brutal 15-month campaign in Gaza.
The first 42-day phase of the truce and hostage exchange agreement will begin on Sunday, when three of the 33 hostages due to be freed will be returned to Israel.
Exchange the remaining 65 hostagesboth dead and alive, will be negotiated on the 16th day of the ceasefire. However, the return of those hostages will not begin until the 43rd day of the deal, marking the second phase of the ceasefire.
Hanukkah candles are lit at places set at the holiday table for the Bibas family, an Israeli family that includes 11-month-old baby Kfir, his four-year-old brother Ariel and their parents, Shiri and Yarden, who are being held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, in Hostage Square and of the missing, December 9, 2023 in Tel Aviv, Israel. (Photo by David Silverman/Getty Images)
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But family members of the hostages still in Gaza have yet to fully rejoice, with many viewing the move forward with cautious optimism, others I believe that the agreement is not good enough.
“We deal with this business [for] more than a year and both sides tried to reach the best deal for themselves,” retired Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Major General Yaakov Amidror told reporters Thursday afternoon.
Amidror made it clear that there is no way to achieve a perfect solution, given the enormous complexity and the need to balance the value of human life with that of achieving a strategic security objective.
“This is a deal. It’s bad. But it’s the only way we can get the 33 hostages out,” he said. “And I think that, morally, it should be done.”
Amidror pointed to objections raised against the deal by those who argue that the first phase should have included every single hostage held by Hamas, as well as others who argue that bad for Israeli security.
Part of the ceasefire agreement is reported to include a plan for Israel to withdraw its forces across the Strip to a security perimeter surrounding Israeli communities on the Gaza border.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a meeting as Israel’s security cabinet gathers to approve a ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal with Hamas, in West Jerusalem January 17, 2025. The proposed deal, designed to end the ongoing war in Gaza, includes the exchange hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons. (Photo by Koby Gideon (GPO)/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The details of the IDF withdrawal remain unclear at this time, particularly as they relate to the phases of the agreement and specific security corridors across the Gaza Strip, although The Times of Israel reported this week that The IDF intends to remain in the Gaza Strip until the last hostage is freed.
“Israel is losing the ability to completely destroy Hamas,” Amidror said. “Israel is losing the ability to continue the momentum, and what will happen after 42 days, no one knows.”
The retired major general noted that since the terms of the agreement have not been made public, it is not clear what kind of security deal Israel has with the US when it comes to Iran and the ongoing threat that Hamas – despite losing roughly 80% of its military capability with an estimated at least 20,000 killed militants – represents a potential regrouping in Gaza.
Given this concern, far-right Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir this week he reportedly threatened to quit if Israel agreed to the deal that was reached.
A lot of people don’t like it, because it’s clear that Israel is losing the ability to destroy Hamas, as we promised, Amidror said. “But we’ve found ourselves in a situation where the only way is for the hostages to return home.”
A wall covered with photographs of hostages held in the Gaza Strip following a deadly attack by Hamas on October 7 calling for the release of the hostages on January 17, 2025 in Tel Aviv, Israel. On Wednesday, mediators in the conflict announced a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. Formal approval by the Israeli government was expected on Thursday but was delayed until Friday, although mediators insisted the deal was expected to take effect on Sunday. (Photo: Amir Levy/Getty Images)
Amidror explained that it became beyond doubt that as Israeli forces advanced into the areas near where the hostages were being held, then they were killed by Hamas guards.
“We realized that there was no military way to get them. And we had to make a decision, a very difficult one – should we hand over the hostages [lives]or are we making a deal?”
John Hannah, former national security adviser to Dick Cheney and senior associate at JINSA Randi & Charles Wax, said it was “an agonizing decision, extremely painful, but a decision that the people of Israel must make.”
Hannah said that while the decision is “incredibly divisive,” polls show most Israelis support the return of the hostages rather than the total destruction of Hamas.
“Hamas will be able to claim they survived,” Hannah said. “Israel will achieve one of its main war goals, God willing, by returning the hostages, but at a price… [of] the destruction of Hamas, both in its military and in its management component.”
Smoke and flames rise after an Israeli air strike on the Gaza Strip on November 2, 2023. (Ali Jadallah/Anadolu)
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“The best deal is the one that isn’t reached,” Amidror said. “This is the deal.”
“There is no other way to free the hostages, and within Israeli society it was very important,” said the retired major general. “Israel is a democracy, the government should hear what the people say.”
