The terrorist group Hamas reported this Friday (10) that its delegation left Egypt, after participating in negotiations on a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, and highlighted that the decision now rests with Israel.
“The negotiating delegation left Cairo for Doha. The occupation [Israel] denied the proposal presented by the mediators, which we had accepted. Consequently, the ball is now completely in the occupation’s court,” Hamas said in a letter sent to other Palestinian factions.
The Egyptian outlet “Al Qahera News”, close to that country’s intelligence service, reported that Hamas and Israeli delegations had left Cairo after two days of negotiations. The efforts of Egypt, Qatar and the United States as mediators in these indirect negotiations “continue, to bring the positions of the two parties closer together”, the vehicle highlighted, citing a high-ranking Egyptian source.
The proposal presented by the mediators, which, according to a representative of the movement, establishes a three-phase truce, each lasting 42 days, and includes Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and an exchange of hostages kidnapped by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israel in order to achieve “a permanent ceasefire”.
Israel responded that the proposal is far from its demands and reiterated its opposition to a permanent ceasefire until it achieves a complete victory over Hamas, which, like the United States and the European Union, it classifies as terrorist.
The Israel Defense Forces spokesperson stated that the country is still studying how it will respond to the proposal, but that for now they will continue operating in the Gaza Strip.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Egypt and Qatar’s proposal was “far from Israel’s essential demands” but that it would still send negotiators to Cairo to continue talks on a ceasefire agreement.
Tags: ceasefire negotiations Egypt Hamas decision Israel World
