Cathy Gordon
Hamas’s political bureau official Bassem Naim says a lot of “misinformation” has been circulated through the media in recent days regarding the ongoing truce talks in Doha.
He said the Israelis are focusing on only one aspect of the negotiations, the release of captives, and are unwilling to discuss Hamas’s three demands – a permanent end to the war, “total withdrawal” from Gaza and the return of displaced people to their homes.
“Hamas has clearly told the mediators that we cannot accept negotiating any prisoner deal unless the Israelis give these guarantees,” Naim told Al Jazeera, describing it as “shocking” that the latest Israeli proposals retract points previously agreed on at prior talks.
“Now suddenly, the Israelis are rejecting these. We believe it is not about a ceasefire, it is about Netanyahu using the negotiations as a cover to gain more time to continue his plans for the complete bombardment of the rest of the Gaza Strip, including Rafah, and to relieve international pressure,” said Naim.
“We told the negotiators tonight we’re not ready to discuss any further proposals. There are talks between the Israelis and the negotiators. There are no talks with us. It is up to the superpower Americans and Europeans to exercise more pressure on Netanyahu not endanger the whole region and undermine any chance of long-term stability, security and prosperity.”
Since there is no UN Security Council resolution supported by the US demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel continues to “buy time” for its planned invasion of southern Rafah, an analyst says.
“Israel doesn’t feel the full pressure from the United States, so it can keep pushing the limits. The US is requesting them not to go into Rafah, but it is not requesting them directly to agree to a ceasefire,” said Luciano Zaccara from Qatar University’s Gulf Studies Center.
“This could be just buying time to ready the military operation on Rafah.”
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