Skip to player
Skip to main content
Skip to footer
Search
Connect
Watch fullscreen
Like
Comments
Bookmark
Share
Add to Playlist
Report
Gaza Ceasefire Deal: role of regional and international partners
CGTN Europe
Follow
19/01/2025
CGTN Europe speaks to Dr. Samuel Ramani from the University of Oxford.
Category
🎵
Music
Transcript
Display full video transcript
00:00
Dr. Samuel Rahmani is a tutor of politics and international relations at the University
00:05
of Oxford and I'm pleased to say that he joins us now. Dr. Rahmani, Joe Biden has been taking
00:12
credit from the US side of this deal and Donald Trump is about to be sworn in as president
00:17
tomorrow. He'll certainly have something to say. What is your assessment of which global
00:22
leaders as well as others got this deal across the line?
00:26
Well, I mean the most tenacious of all the regional actors who was involved in this deal
00:30
was Qatar. Basically, from the very beginning, the Qataris facilitated the release of a large
00:36
number of hostages back in November of 2023. They consistently continued their mediation
00:42
efforts even though there was pressure coming from both sides of Congress about the Qatari
00:47
financial contributions to Hamas' Gaza Strip in the past and they, along with the Egyptians,
00:52
were also quite important in facilitating the ceasefire deal too.
00:57
Yeah, Donald Trump's Middle East convoy though, Steve Witkoff, is expected to be a regular
01:02
presence in the region. So, noted what you say about Qatar being such a strong influence there
01:08
but what do you expect from the US in their policy in 2025 considering what we have going
01:14
on tomorrow? Well, typically, when you've seen major grand bargain agreements, whether
01:19
it be normalization deals or whether it be any kind of agreement on a ceasefire, the heavy
01:24
lifting is often done by regional actors and then a larger great power finishes it off and adds
01:32
weight and adds gravitas to it. That's very similar to what we saw with the Saudi Arabia-Iran
01:36
normalization where Iraq and Oman did a lot of the initial contacts and then China was the
01:41
country that brought it over the line. The same thing we're seeing here with the Qataris and
01:44
Egyptians taking the lead and then the Americans bringing it on. Steve Witkoff is an interesting
01:49
character because he's somebody who can engage with both the Israelis and the Arabs because of
01:53
his deep business relationships in the Arab world as well as we've seen an ability to convince
01:58
Netanyahu towards moderation, towards accepting some kind of a ceasefire even above the wishes
02:04
of some of his more extreme coalition partners. Yes, and a ceasefire being a crucial much-wasted
02:11
step of course is still miles away from any kind of peace it seems now. Do you think this will hold?
02:19
I think it's very fragile. I think it will probably hold for the duration of the six weeks.
02:23
I've been engaging with numerous diplomats from across the region over the past several days
02:27
and there seems to be a quiet optimism that it will last the six weeks and Hamas will abide
02:32
by the release of 33 hostages but after that all bets are off. Netanyahu's coalition is fracturing
02:38
as we've seen with the withdrawal of Ben-Gavir and there are rumors that the Israeli cabinet
02:42
approval of this deal was because Smotrik was resistant to it. Also there's talk in Israel
02:47
that there's actually 60 hostages who are alive and the 33 is only part of them. There's 100
02:52
hostages in total who are unaccounted for. So I think that there's plenty of frustration in Israel
02:57
with the terms of this deal. Netanyahu rejected this deal back in May and now it's coming back
03:02
on the table. I wouldn't be surprised if this war did reheat. Okay, Dr Samuel Rahmani, Tutor of
03:09
Politics and International Relations at the University of Oxford, we appreciate your time
03:14
and your expertise. Thank you very much. Thank you very much.
Recommended
4:00
|
Up next
Can Regional Talks Secure a Lasting Gaza Ceasefire?
CGTN Europe
01/03/2025
5:05
Syria offensive: "Everything will be decided by the battle in Homs"
CGTN Europe
07/12/2024
5:10
Much awaited Gaza ceasefire deal comes into effect
CGTN Europe
19/01/2025
3:31
Concerns over regional escalation after Hamas leader killed
CGTN Europe
31/07/2024
3:57
"Not enough can be done to bridge the gap between Israel and Hamas at this time"
CGTN Europe
11/02/2025
3:54
Syria offensive: "it's partly an opportunity that rebels are exploring"
CGTN Europe
03/12/2024
1:30
Lithuania and the Philippines sign security pact to counter 'authoritarian axis' of China and Russia
euronews (in English)
today
3:09
"NO BILLIONAIRES IN NYC": Mamdani’s SHOCKING Statement Stuns Nation |Trump Calls It a Communist Plot
Oneindia
today
1:10
US skips global UN meeting in Spain aimed at raising trillions to combat poverty
euronews (in English)
yesterday
0:47
Spanish PM’s former aide Santos Cerdán detained without bail in corruption probe
euronews (in English)
yesterday
3:36
VIDEO: Trump’s SURPRISING Statement On Musk Even After Brutal Attacks On His ‘Big Beautiful Bill’
Oneindia
yesterday
3:15
RAW FOOTAGE: Gaza BURNS After Deadly Israeli Airstrikes | Netanyahu Trying To Sabotage Ceasefire?
Oneindia
yesterday
1:06
Dutch activists lay out 18,000 pairs of shoes in Gaza protest
CGTN Europe
yesterday
5:44
Europe heatwave: "Eleven million labour hours were lost across the UK economy in 2022"
CGTN Europe
yesterday
3:49
China economy: "Consumer demand remains rather lacklustre"
CGTN Europe
yesterday
3:08
Wang Yi's trip to the EU for dialogue amid growing global uncertainty
CGTN Europe
yesterday
30:00
The Family Belongings in Time Ep05_The Watchers on North Island
CGTN Europe
yesterday
30:00
The Family Belongings in Time Ep04_The Root-seeking Family in the Courtyard
CGTN Europe
yesterday
30:00
The Family Belongings in Time Ep03_Revisiting the Families of Woodblock New Year Pictures
CGTN Europe
yesterday
30:00
The Family Belongings in Time Ep01_New Herdsman Returning to Haizi
CGTN Europe
yesterday
30:00
The Family Belongings in Time Ep02_Family Heirlooms in the Ancient Town
CGTN Europe
yesterday
1:03
Staying cool amid Spain’s record-breaking heat
CGTN Europe
2 days ago
0:32
IAEA’s Grossi: Iran isn’t kicking out nuclear inspectors
CGTN Europe
2 days ago
4:13
Renewed efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza
CGTN Europe
2 days ago
0:45
Humanoid football final sees AI-driven face-off
CGTN Europe
2 days ago