May the ceasefire in Gaza be a historic appointment toward real Peace

At last, guns are silent in the Gaza Strip. Terror, death, and hatred have been spread for too long.

An agreement that should and could have been reached many months ago, preventing the destruction of Gaza, which amounts to over 47 thousand dead and 110 thousand wounded, not counting the missing, in total violation of international law.

We would like to join the joy for the liberation of the hostages who were kept hidden by Hamas for 470 days and the Palestinian prisoners freed from the Israeli prisons with a heartfelt thanks to those who fought in Israel, Palestine’s mixed groups and all over the world to end the massacre never losing hope, rejecting mutual hate and always working for peace and reconciliation.

The ceasefire must hold and become permanent, the needs of the people must be taken care of. The reconstruction of the Gaza Strip must be carried out with a distinguished and effective commitment of funds from the entire international community. The immediate opening of all the crossings to let humanitarian aid in, and not just those in Rafah, is of the highest priority. NGOs and UN agencies must return to the Strip and be allowed to operate. They have been doing it remotely and with the local staff that survived in these long months, they have never abandoned the population, Gaza cannot remain locked in a siege, and the expansion of settlements in the West Bank must be stopped. A real negotiation for a just peace and the end of the occupation must begin, to rebuild Gaza and ensure justice and reparation for the victims.

But concern looms over the statements and threats of the Israeli right against any kind of agreement, and the economic and political interests of allied powers and autocrats for a new partitioning of the Middle East that has nothing to do with peoples’ rights, democracy, and the building of peace and common security based on international law.

Only the prominence and recognition of the role of the United Nations and international law will be able to carry out this delicate phase by respecting the rights of all parties, of the aspirations and duties of each people.

We call for our institutions to take this path with no hesitation, putting our diplomacy and all our negotiating resources at the disposal of the UN system, taking on UN resolutions and the rulings of its justice bodies with responsibility.

The appointment with Peace is not a favor to allies and friends, but rather an appointment with History.