Netanyahu accused of exploiting Gaza ceasefire ahead of September polls
Seven months after a ceasefire was brokered, Israeli forces have killed at least 880 Palestinians, raising the total death toll to 72,797, while the US-led Board of Peace struggles to enforce the agreement amid diplomatic voids.
Analysts and human rights officials have warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is deliberately stalling the peace process to appease right-wing coalition allies and voters ahead of national elections expected in September. Seven months after a ceasefire was brokered to halt military operations in Gaza, the agreement has been described by critics as a cover for continued Israeli actions in the enclave. According to Gaza’s health ministry, Israeli forces have killed at least 880 Palestinians since the truce began, bringing the total war death toll to 72,797.
Mai El-Sheikh, spokesperson for the United Nations Human Rights Office in Palestine, stated that Israel is using the ceasefire as cover for war crimes. She warned that a humanitarian disaster is being deliberately engineered through restrictions on food and medicine, intended to spread panic among displaced families. This violence has been accompanied by a systematic demolition campaign, with the Gaza Rights Center documenting at least 12 forced evacuations in May across central camps including Nuseirat, Bureij, and Maghazi.
Rights monitors noted that Israeli operations are targeting dilapidated structures in the 35 per cent of Gaza not directly controlled by Israeli forces, a tactic described as an attempt to make the territory uninhabitable. With nearly 90 per cent of Gaza’s buildings destroyed, rights groups argue that advance phone warnings do not absolve the occupying power of its legal obligations, serving instead as a tool of intimidation to maintain forced displacement for the population of 2.3 million.
Mohannad Mustafa, an academic specialising in Israeli affairs, argued that Netanyahu is obstructing humanitarian aid and reconstruction efforts to maintain a comprehensive military occupation of the Gaza Strip. Mustafa noted that the prime minister is facing domestic scrutiny regarding Israel’s other fronts, with Hezbollah carrying out daily attacks in southern Lebanon and the Iranian government still in power. Palestinian analyst Eyad al-Qarra added that disarmament demands are being used as a pretext to evade ceasefire commitments, suggesting operations would continue even if all weapons were surrendered.
The US-led Board of Peace has struggled to enforce the agreement due to internal disagreements and a diplomatic void attributed to US President Donald Trump’s focus on Iran. Kenneth Katzman, a US-based researcher, said Trump’s preoccupation with Iran has created a regional diplomatic void that Israel is exploiting. Nickolay Mladenov, a Gaza executive member on the Board of Peace, warned the UN Security Council that without a reconstruction plan, Gaza will remain indefinitely exposed to crisis.
