The Gaza Ceasefire Stalemate and the Case of Mahmoud Khalil: A discussion with Sami Al-Arian

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy to Middle East Steve Witkoff arrived in Doha, Qatar for negotiations on extending the Gaza “ceasefire” and exchange of captives deal between Hamas and Israel. These talks come in the midst of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and as Israel has continued to violate the terms of the original agreement signed on January 19. This weekend Israel cut off electricity to the one remaining desalination plant in Gaza, which provided drinking water to some 500,000 Palestinians. Israel claims it is undertaking these actions in an effort to pressure Hamas, effectively admitting to carrying out an act of collective punishment on the civilian population.

Israel has maintained that it does not intend to move the ceasefire to a formal second phase, which would include the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and an enduring cessation of military hostilities. Instead, Israel is pushing for a 60-day extension of the ceasefire with no guarantee of its withdrawal or an end to the war. It wants Hamas to release ten living Israeli captives upon signing such a deal. Hamas has said that it is negotiating in good faith and wants the U.S. and regional mediators from Qatar and Egypt to pressure Israel to abide by the original three phase deal. Israel remains irked that the Trump administration’s envoy on hostages Adam Boehler met directly with Hamas.

In a wide-ranging discussion, Jeremy Scahill speaks to Dr. Sami Al-Arian, the director of the Center for Islam and Global Affairs at Istanbul Zaim University. In addition to discussing the Gaza negotiations, the strategies of Hamas, the U.S. and Israel, they also talk about the case of Palestinian organizer Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University graduate and green card holder who was snatched by federal agents on Saturday night and threatened with deportation.

Al-Arian himself was prosecuted by the U.S. government during the George W. Bush administration, though the government failed to win a conviction at trial on the 52 count indictment it brought against him. Facing ongoing threats of prosecution, Al-Arian agreed to a plea deal and to voluntarily leave the U.S. He was deported in 2015. “It's incredible how American values, the American Constitution, American cherished principles have been shredded by this administration and former administrations,” says Al-Arian.

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