Eliezer “Chayni” Marom, a retired Israeli Navy commander who recently held the role of Israel’s Northern Project Coordinator, expressed significant concerns about Israel’s current ceasefire and hostage deal with Hamas. He worries that there may be unspoken concessions within the agreement, a sentiment he shared during an interview with Ron Kofman and Aryeh Eldad on 103FM Radio, Maariv reports.
The discussion, which also touched on remarks from US President Donald Trump and a ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, turned toward the ceasefire with Hamas, which is currently in its initial phase. Marom voiced doubts about possible hidden terms in the hostage deal. He stated, “I hope there is nothing in this agreement that allows Hamas to remain in power. Their sudden generosity over the past week, after the Netzarim incident, when Israel closed the border crossing because they refused to transfer [recently released hostage Arbel] Yehoud to us, raised my suspicions.”
Marom further questioned whether Israel might have unwittingly compromised on aspects of the agreement that could allow Hamas to retain its power. He posed the question, “What’s in this agreement that we haven’t been told? Hamas is acting like they got far more than what’s been made public, and that deeply concerns me.”
Though Marom admitted that he was not privy to the full details of the agreement and did not know if there were undisclosed aspects, he acknowledged that Israel’s firm stance in the negotiations had been a key factor in the deal’s success. He remarked, “At the end of the day, what protected us was that the State of Israel stood firm. Because we refused to concede, things played out in our favor.”
Marom also responded to Trump’s comments on Gaza, in which the newly elected president suggested the mass voluntary displacement of Gaza’s residents. Marom stated, “I don’t think it will ever be possible to relocate all the residents of the Gaza Strip. That just won’t happen—except by force, and we don’t want to do that. The American proposal assumes people will simply pack their things and leave voluntarily.”
While acknowledging Gaza’s potential, Marom noted the difficulties of pursuing such a strategy. “Gaza is a remarkable piece of land. Back when we had a radar station there, I saw the beaches—I’ve never seen anything like them, with that kind of sand. There is real potential here, but we’re not living in a fantasy. There are two million Palestinians in Gaza,” he concluded.
{Matzav.com Israel}