After a senior leader from Hamas informed Agence France-Presse on Sunday that the movement had decided to halt negotiations following Saturday’s targeting in Al-Mawasi, the movement entirely denied the claim.
Withdrawal or not? Ezat al-Rishq, a member of the political bureau of the movement, stated on Sunday that Hamas had not withdrawn from the ceasefire talks after recent Israeli attacks on Gaza.
He added in a statement that reports in some media about Hamas’s decision to halt negotiations in response to the Al-Mawasi massacre west of Khan Younis were baseless.
Al-Rishq accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of attempting to obstruct the efforts of Arab and U.S. mediators to reach a ceasefire agreement. He emphasized that the escalation in attacks by Netanyahu and the Israeli government aims to frustrate efforts to end the conflict.
This comes after two Egyptian security sources familiar with the ceasefire talks in Doha and Cairo announced on Saturday that the negotiations had been suspended after three days of intense discussions.
A senior Hamas leader confirmed to Agence France-Presse on Sunday that the commander of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Mohammed Deif, “is fine” after being targeted by an Israeli strike on Gaza on Saturday.
Requesting anonymity, he mentioned, “Commander Mohammed Deif is fine and directly oversees Qassam’s operations in Gaza.”
He also pointed out that the Israeli raids were “massacres against civilians,” adding that Israel claims the presence of movement leaders to justify the bombing.
He announced that the movement had decided to stop negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza due to Israel’s lack of seriousness, referring to yesterday’s bombing.
He explained that Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’s political bureau, had informed mediators and some regional parties during a round of phone calls and discussions about Hamas’s decision to stop negotiations due to Israel’s lack of seriousness and ongoing policy of stalling and committing massacres against unarmed civilians.
This came just hours after Israel announced on Saturday that it had targeted the military wing leader of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, and the Khan Younis Brigade commander Rafe’ Salameh, in the south of the Gaza Strip.
However, these reports were unconfirmed, but the strikes on the Al-Mawasi displacement camp resulted in at least 90 deaths and 300 injuries, according to the health ministry in the sector.
Since last week, talks have been taking place in Qatar and Egypt about a Washington-backed agreement that would allow for a halt in fighting in Gaza, which has now entered its tenth month, and the release of prisoners held by Hamas, with the participation of the heads of American, Egyptian, and Israeli intelligence.
However, the situation remains unclear after the Israeli strikes on Al-Mawasi, as announced on Saturday evening, two Egyptian sources said that negotiations on the truce agreement are frozen until Israel proves its seriousness, while the movement confirmed its continuation.
