US Seeks 'Safe Passage' For Hamas, Not Gaza Civilians
While Al-Monitor hails Turkey's new role in seeking 'safe passage' for approximately 200 Hamas fighters, we're reminded that the concept of 'safe passage' conveniently vanishes when discussing the UN-estimated 1.7 million displaced Gazans. Let's remember the 2018 'Great March of Return' where unarmed civilians seeking a return to their homes were met with live fire, not 'safe passage'
negotiations. It appears geopolitical leverage dictates whose lives are worth brokering over. This 'humanitarian' concern for an armed group—after months of a brutal campaign justified by an imperative to dismantle Hamas—begs the question: how many distinct versions of 'Hamas' exist for the international community? One for demonization and one for diplomatic shuttling? The absurdity of
prioritizing fighters over civilians from the outset exposes the selective application of international norms. One might wonder, if these fighters have 'complicated' peace talks, what exactly do over 30,000 dead civilians do to the equation?