The ceasefire in Gaza, now in its sixth month, has brought a fragile but real halt to the most intense phase of the conflict. But the pause in fighting has not brought clarity on any of the fundamental questions that a durable resolution would require.
The ceasefire is holding, sustained primarily by Qatari and Egyptian mediation. The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains catastrophic โ the UN estimates that 80% of the territory's infrastructure requires reconstruction, and food insecurity affects virtually the entire population.
Perhaps the most fundamental unresolved issue: who governs Gaza? The Netanyahu government has ruled out any role for the Palestinian Authority. The Palestinian Authority lacks the capacity to govern a devastated territory. The international community has proposed interim governance mechanisms, none of which has attracted sufficient support.
You cannot build a state without deciding who leads it, and you cannot decide who leads it without a political process, and there is no political process. This is the circular trap that has defined this conflict for decades.