Israel-Hamas war ceasefire deal: Cautious optimism for Jewish, Muslim communities on Long Island
Relief and happiness spread through some of Long Island’s Jewish and Muslim populations Wednesday as word came of a ceasefire deal in Gaza, potentially ending more than 15 months of conflict that tore apart the region, ended thousands of lives and created an enormous humanitarian crisis.
But there was also a deep wariness about what comes next.
For some, there was fear the conflict is not over: Jews fear Hamas will return to attack Israel, while Muslims are concerned Israel will never fully stop controlling Gaza.
Underlying all the doubts and worries, however, was a sliver of optimism, finally, after so many wrenching days.
"Everybody has been waiting for this," said Ammad Sheikh, a Muslim who lives in Plainview and is a director of marketing at a law firm. "Finally there is like a light at the end of this tunnel, like a glimmer of hope. Hopefully it stays, because this is a temporary ceasefire."
Robin Siminovsky, a retired teacher in the Hebrew school at the East Meadow Beth-El Jewish Center, shared the sentiment.
Her son Lucas Siminovsky grew up in Queens and moved to Israel when he turned 18, where he is serving in the Israeli military. In October, six members of Siminovsky's unit were killed in Lebanon, where Israel battled Hezbollah, while 11 others were badly injured.
"I’m cautiously optimistic," Robin Siminovsky, who recently relocated to Florida, said of the ceasefire. "Let’s see what actually happens. ... But I am hopeful."
The ceasefire deal will be implemented in three phases.
The first phase, which would begin Sunday and span six weeks, calls for the return of 33 hostages, including two Americans, out of the approximately 100 remaining in Gaza.
The agreement, which as of Wednesday night was still being finalized by the Israeli government, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Palestinian civilians would also be allowed to return to northern Gaza and there would be a sizable influx of humanitarian aid into the region.
The second phase would include the exchange of the remaining living hostages, officials said. During the third phase, the remains of dead hostages would be returned home.
That third phase could potentially allow for the return of the body of Plainview native Omer Neutra, who was initially believed to have been held hostage. It was learned last month that Neutra had, in fact, been killed by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.
A Neutra family spokesman did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Hamas killed 1,200 people in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and kidnapped about 250. More than 46,000 people in Gaza have been killed by Israel during its counteroffensive against Hamas, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which has not distinguished between civilians and combatants. Survivors have been left with their homes in ruins, caught between battles, and plagued by poverty and famine.
Rabbi Tuvia Teldon, head of the Chabad movement on Long Island, said while he is pleased the hostages will be freed, he is worried Hamas has not been wiped out and the deal will allow it to return in force.
"I am very happy for the families of the hostages, but I am concerned that the prisoner exchange is going to create a future war with Hamas once again," he said. "Peace is always good, but the question is if peace is just laying the groundwork for another conflict. Then we’re kicking the can down the road once again."
Teldon added: "Even though we’ve had a very effective [15] months of debilitating Hamas, it doesn’t seem that we’ve gotten to the point where we can be assured that Oct. 7 is not going to happen again."
Mamoon Iqbal, a leader of the Masjid Noor mosque in Huntington, said he was glad Israel’s counteroffensive would end, though he believes it should have happened long ago because it killed so many civilians.
The ceasefire was “almost 13 months overdue. A ceasefire indicates that there’s two people, two groups actually fighting. This wasn’t a ceasefire. This was just a demolition. This is just a military machine destroying a civilian population under the guise of fighting terrorism,” Iqbal said.
Farhana Islam, a community organizer in Nassau County, said she had mixed feelings about the ceasefire.
It was "a little bit of shock and apprehension because we’ve seen these pauses in the past and it didn’t really make much of a long-term change," she said.
"We’re really looking at it as a temporary deal and a hostage exchange," she said. "It’s cautious optimism I suppose. ... They deserve a break and over a year of relentless killing, it warrants a break."
But lifting the Israeli occupation of Gaza and other areas "would be a real victory," she said. "That would be the ultimate goal."
Bari Nirenberg, who grew up in Dix Hills and moved to Israel in 1988, has two sons who were drafted into active duty in the Israeli military, although they’ve since been released from service.
While Nirenberg is relieved the hostages will be returning home, she’s bracing for the news of how many have survived.
"This deal will not be like the previous one because we don't know how many of the hostages will be coming home alive," she said. "I fear that this will be a distressing six weeks for us in Israel."
Even as "there are so many details that we still don't know," Rabbi Josh Dorsch, of the Merrick Jewish Centre, said, one thing is clear.
"There has been too much death. Too much loss. Too much pain," he said. "And this is a really important step in terms of mitigating that and building toward a future where, God willing, we see peace."
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