The potential effects of Israel's ceasefire with Hezbollah
With the possibility of a region-wide war fading, the Palestinian militant group Hamas faces increased isolation and limited options


While Israeli forces and Hamas militants engage in a brutal Gaza conflict over the last year, Israel has also waged a separate war against Hezbollah, bombing suspected militant sites across Lebanon in response to months of rocket bombardments on Israel's north. The two fronts were, for a time, taken as a sign that a broader regional war was not merely possible but already underway.
However, the U.S.-France-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has succeeded in reducing hostilities between the two adversaries. And, in turn, the fragile detente has refocused attention back on the Gaza Strip, where a diminished Hamas remains a potent force.
Is Hamas more isolated now?
Hamas is "feeling the pressure" stemming from Hezbollah's ceasefire agreement, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on CBS' "Face the Nation." Hezbollah has been "one of [Hamas'] main partners in crime" and the truce undercuts their belief that the Lebanese militia would be "with them till the end." The Palestinian group had long hoped a "wider war in the Middle East would help deliver the organization a victory in its war with Israel," The New York Times said. But the Hezbollah ceasefire "left that strategy in tatters" and potentially removed "Hamas' most important ally from the fight."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Crucially, both organizations are participants in "what Israel has come to see as a seven-front war," in which "Iran has backed an array of groups" including Hamas, Hezbollah and others, said Foundation for the Defense of Democracies adjunct fellow Seth Frantzman at The National Interest. The ceasefire "signals a shift in the attitude of both militias' Iranian backers," said Charles Hollis, a former British diplomat to Iran, to NBC News. "The Iranians aren't going to have nearly as much ability to resupply their proxies because they're having to shore up their own domestic defense."
Could an Israel-Hamas ceasefire be next?
Hamas leadership had initially "hoped the expansion of the war into Lebanon would pressure Israel to reach a comprehensive ceasefire," Reuters said. That Israel and Hezbollah reached a ceasefire independently represents a "blow" to the Palestinian group, given Hezbollah's previous insistence that it "would not agree to a ceasefire until the war in Gaza ends." Among Palestinians, there are fears that the ceasefire means Israel will "double down on the enclave now that its forces will be freed up from the fighting against Hezbollah," Al Jazeera said.
To that end, while Hamas has expressed hopes that "any deal with Hezbollah would lead to the end of hostilities" between it and Israel, the group has "not indicated that it has shifted from previous negotiating positions" such as a permanent ceasefire and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in exchange for any further hostage releases, NBC said.
Still, that does not mean Hamas is willing to publicly denounce the ceasefire agreement either. "Any announcement of a ceasefire is welcome," Hamas political wing member Osama Hamdan said in an interview with Hezbollah-allied broadcaster Al-Mayadeen, according to The Times of Israel. "Hezbollah has stood by our people and made significant sacrifices."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.
-
Bombs or talks: What’s next in the US-Iran showdown?
Talking Points US gives Tehran a two month deadline to deal
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Inside the contested birth years of generations
The Explainer Battles over where Gen Z ends and Gens Alpha and Beta begin remain unsettled
By David Faris Published
-
Art review: Jack Whitten: The Messenger
Feature Museum of Modern Art, New York City, through Aug. 2
By The Week US Published
-
Bombs or talks: What's next in the US-Iran showdown?
Talking Points US gives Tehran a two month deadline to deal
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
'Even authoritarian regimes need a measure of public support — the consent of at least some of the governed'
instant opinion 'Opinion, comment and editorials of the day'
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
'A political agenda aimed at reshaping higher education into an ideological stronghold'
instant opinion 'Opinion, comment and editorials of the day'
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Is this the end of democracy in Turkey?
Today's Big Question President ErdoÄŸan's jailing of political rival a 'decisive moment' that moves country toward full-fledged autocracy
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK Published
-
Amtrak is the latest organization under DOGE's scrutiny
In the Spotlight The head of the organization recently announced his resignation
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
How are attorneys dealing with Trump's attacks on law firms?
Today's Big Question Trump has sanctioned the law firm that investigated his dealings with Stormy Daniels, among others
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
The history of Guantanamo Bay detention camp
The Explainer Trump wants to use the Cuban outpost as a deportation way station
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Activist arrest: A threat to free speech?
Feature A former Columbia University grad student with a green card was detained and sent to a detention facility
By The Week US Published