Hamas reiterates opposition to ‘new demands, conditions’ for Gaza truce

Khalil al-Hayya, deputy chief of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas’ Political Bureau

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas as reiterated its opposition to imposition of “any new demands or conditions” by the Israeli regime for implementation of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, which has been subject to a genocidal war by the regime for the past 11 months.

The movement’s delegation, headed by Deputy Political Bureau Chief Khalil al-Hayya, made the remarks to Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman and Egyptian General Intelligence Minister Abbas Kamel in the Qatari capital Doha on Wednesday.

Doha and Cairo have been mediating negotiations aimed at potential conclusion of a truce agreement that could bring an end to the October-present war that the regime began after a retaliatory operation staged by Gaza’s resistance groups. At least 41,084 Palestinians, most of them women, children, and adolescents, have been killed and more than 95,000 others injured as a result of the brutal military onslaught.

The Hamas’ team repeated the group’s assertions that any agreement had to feature “the withdrawal of the occupation army from all areas of the Gaza Strip.”

Such pullout had to take place “in a manner that serves the interests of our people, allows for a captive/prisoner exchange deal, provides relief to our people, facilitates the return of displaced persons, and [initiation of Gaza’s] reconstruction process,” it added.

The movement also rejected “any projects related to the post-aggression phase in the Gaza Strip, stressing that the management of the strip is a Palestinian internal affair to be agreed upon with a unified Palestinian vision.”

In July, Hamas agreed to a truce deal featuring the above conditions that had been forwarded by the administration of the United States President Joe Biden.

The Israeli regime, however, rejected the proposal before coming up with “new conditions,” including its keeping its forces inside Gaza along the coastal sliver’s border with Egypt.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has turned a deaf ear to vociferous international demands calling for an end to the hugely deadly consequences of the war.

He has also dismissed internal uproar against continuation of the war by those demanding the release of the regime’s captives who remain in Gaza.

The premier has vowed to sustain the onslaught until Hamas’ “elimination,” a prospect that has been ruled out as impossible by the group and even some Israeli officials and Tel Aviv’s own allies.