Gershon Baskin claims that Ahmed al-Jabari, the senior leader and second-in-command of the military wing of Hamas, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, was killed hours after he received the draft of a permanent truce agreement with Israel, which included mechanisms for maintaining the ceasefire.
Mr. Jabari is dead — and with him died the possibility of a long-term cease-fire. Israel may have also compromised the ability of Egyptian intelligence officials to mediate a short-term cease-fire and placed Israel’s peace treaty with Egypt at risk.
The roles that Ahmed Jabari and Razi Hamed play in Hamas-Israel Relations.
Gershon Baskin, who was trying to mediate a new cease-fire between Israel and Hamas; his principal Hamas contact was Jabari, the military leader whom Israel killed by obliterating his car with an airstrike.
Gershon Baskin, who helped mediate talks between Israel and Hamas for the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit claims that Jabari was killed hours after he received the draft of a permanent truce agreement with Israel, which included mechanisms for maintaining the ceasefire.
Gershon Baskin claims that Israeli officials knew Mr Al Jabari had received a draft agreement for a long-term ceasefire on Wednesday but had nonetheless decided to kill him.
Gershon Baskin claims that killing al-Jabari spiked chances for a return to the relative calm that prevailed along the border with Gaza until last week as well as angering Egypt mediators.
Gershon Baskin, who helped negotiate the release of Gilad Shalit — the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas —told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz that “this blood could have been spared. Those who made the decision must be judged by the voters, but to my regret they will get more votes because of this.”
Gershon Baskin thinks that the Israeli government has made a strategic mistake which will cost the lives of quite a number of innocent people on both sides.
Gershon Baskin says that by killing Hamas military chief and launching wide operation, Israel has squandered its chance for calm in Gaza and destroyed its security coordination with Egypt.