The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been broken. Swedish media are discussing the parties' desire to find a peaceful solution and the government, which is accused of inaction after a new UN report reported possible acts of genocide in Gaza.
The ceasefire in Gaza is over. Over the past week, Israel has carried out extensive airstrikes on Gaza, while ground operations in the southern part of the area have intensified.
I Dagens Nyheter The editorial team writes that previous peace agreements between Israel and Hamas have failed, partly because planned negotiations never took place. They express clear skepticism about whether peace is even possible between the parties:
– No, Hamas wants to wipe out Israel and is prepared to use any methods, as the carnage of October 7, 2023 showed. The organization cannot be allowed to use Gaza as a base for terror, they write.
But they do not believe that this does not mean that Israel is blameless.
– But it is not an excuse for Israel to – as now – hinder humanitarian efforts. Or to carry out attacks where civilians are the main victims.
In a main leader in Sydsvenskan The ceasefire is described as far from sustainable. They believe that neither party shows any willingness to compromise:
– The ceasefire agreement has gone up in smoke. The outcome hardly surprises either party – Netanyahu’s right-wing nationalist government and the Hamas Islamist terror group – who cannot give up the idea of destroying each other.
At the same time, the parties are criticized for prioritizing their own goals before the civilian population:
– In this powder keg of explosive hatred, a sustainable ceasefire is far from over. The extremists don't care that it's civilians who are taking the brunt.
On March 13, a UN-appointed commission published an investigation into Israel's use of gender-based violence and sexual violence as a weapon in Gaza. The authors conclude that the state and the Israeli military have committed acts that could constitute genocide in the Gaza Strip. In the wake of Tanvir Mansur accuses Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard and the government of failing to react.
– She said in an interpellation debate in the Riksdag on March 11 that Sweden and the EU have urged Israel to follow international law, and that Sweden supports the UN Court's opinion that the Israeli occupation of Palestine is illegal, he writes in Today's ETC.
Even without an international investigation, it is clear what is happening in Gaza, says Mansur, "you just have to use your eyes" and emphasizes that the words of the Swedish Foreign Minister do not live up to their promises to stand up for international law:
– Sweden still sells red dot sights to the Israeli army. We still stand behind the trade agreement between the EU and Israel.
Trump's actions in Gaza are ringing alarm bells all the way to Kyiv
DN's editorial staff, Dagens Nyheter
The ceasefire was in a powder keg
Principal, Sydsvenskan
The government is silent about the UN report on genocide
Tanvir Mansur, Today's ETC
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