We Welcome the Prisoner Exchange Agreement and Ceasefire, Hadash and CPI

As the Israeli far-right government convenes to vote on the hostage deal, four hostage family members hold Friday afternoon, January 17, a press conference at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square. Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan, says “We can’t let any political considerations ruin this opportunity.” Zangauker, one of the hostage family members who has repeatedly blamed the government for the hostage situation and against the war in Gaza, protesting daily at Tel Aviv’s Begin rallies, calls on Israelis to join the protests and demand the complete fulfillment of all stages of the deal. “This deal will shake us all, it will be hard,” says Zangauker. “Join us, my Matan and all the hostages need you with us.

Anti-war activists protested at the entrance to the Israeli army headquarters in Tel Aviv, confronting the soldiers entering the base with photos from Gaza victims. They were brutally dispersed by cops. “The ceasefire is hopefully but meanwhile the massacre in Gaza continues,” they said, Thursday, January 16, 2025 (Photo: Sofia Fanny Gutman)

On Thursday, the Communist Paty of Israel (CPI) and the Hadash coalition (Democratic Front for Peace and Equality) published a common communique. “We welcome the prisoner exchange agreement and ceasefire, despite the deadly stalling that characterizes the right-wing government in Israel,” they said.

“From day one, we called for an agreement that would bring everyone home—prisoners, abductees, detainees and hostages, Israelis and Palestinians alike. Such an agreement was possible and could have saved the lives of tens of thousands of Palestinians and hundreds of Israelis. We are not satisfied with just the agreement reached and will continue to fight for progress toward a serious negotiation that will lead to the end of the occupation and the siege, and lead to a just and comprehensive peace, based on recognizing the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and the establishment of its independent state alongside the State of Israel,” they agreed.

“We see the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip as an urgent task and call on the world to bear this responsibility, and to prevent the right-wing government in Israel from using the remaining time to complete the implementation of the agreement to continue with genocidal crimes or to resume them after the completion of the prisoners exchange deal. We warn that the ceasefire agreement will be exploited to intensify the incitement and persecution against Arab-Palestinian citizens in Israel or to promote annexation plans for the occupied West Bank.” “This horrific and prolonged war has once again proven that there is no military solution—peace is the solution!”

Also, the Palestinian People’s Party (PPP) signaled support for the agreement, expressing hope that it will put an end to the “ongoing daily killing and genocide against our people.” In a statement the PPP said this moment requires the unity of all the various forces and factions in Palestinian society to ensure the agreement is implemented and to prevent Israel’s “evasion and block its persistence in aborting the aspirations of our people.”

It said that unifying Palestinians within the framework of the Palestine Liberation Organization is essential to resist Israel’s still-existing plans for “colonial displacement and annexation.” The fight to bring war criminals to justice is also just beginning, the PPP declared, along with the struggle to guarantee Palestinian refugees’ right to return and the establishment of a single Palestinian government.

According to Hadash MK Aida Touma-Sliman, “This is a huge moment of relief for all of us – Palestinians and Israelis. But we want an end to the war and the full release of all hostages and prisoners. We want an end to the war. Netanyahu will do what he can to reignite the fighting after the first stage. We, in the streets of Israel, alongside the entire international community, must make sure that he won’t have his way. The goal must be an end to the war, full release of hostages and prisoners, the reconstruction of Gaza, and negotiations for a Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank.”

Related: https://maki.org.il/en/?p=32378