Israel (MNN) — Ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas commenced yesterday in Doha, Qatar. United States Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to join the discussions later this week. The international community is watching closely, hoping for a breakthrough in the longstanding conflict.
The negotiations are set against a backdrop of heightened tensions. Israel recently stopped supplying electricity to Gaza in an effort to put pressure on Hamas. The Israeli delegation hopes to secure the release of the 59 hostages still left in Gaza.
Hamas parade (Photo by Fars Media Corporation, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=134754919)
Pastor Tes Kahasi with Beit Hallel Congregation in Ashdod says Israelis have differing views on where to go from here.
“There are some groups, especially on the left wing, they say that we have to release the hostages with any price. And there is the other group, the right wing especially, they say no, we can’t pay the whole price. Because with this terrorist group, if we pay them the whole price, if we give them everything that they want, we are just pushing them to do the same thing next time. That means kidnapping other people, kidnapping other kids.”
It’s a stark risk, underscored by the still-fresh memory of the returned bodies of the two youngest October 7th hostages, Ariel and Kfir Bibas. Forensic evidence revealed they were brutally murdered “in cold blood” by their terrorist kidnappers.
Amidst these challenges and fears, believers in Israel are pointing people to a greater hope.
“People are hearing the national TV, the news, and everything — and they are frustrated,” says Kahasi. “They are full of fear…. When we are trying to solve the problem of this country, laying on politicians and different kinds of secular personalities, we couldn’t find hope. We couldn’t find peace.
“But we are preaching the Gospel of Christ, and we are preaching this Gospel in our church. So we say to the congregation every time that the hope of this nation is Yeshua.”
Please pray for godly wisdom, peace, and trust in Christ.
Learn more about Beit Hallel Congregation here!
Header photo of Doha, Qatar. (Photo courtesy of Radoslaw Prekurat/Unsplash)
