Hamas refuses to engage in talks unless based on July 2 paper: Source

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen
14 Aug 2024 11:26
4 Shares

A senior Resistance official tells Al Mayadeen that Hamas asserts that Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set new conditions that undermine the negotiation process.

Listen

Palestinians displaced by the Israeli air and ground offensive on the Gaza Strip flee from Hamad City, following an evacuation order by the Israeli army to leave parts of the southern area of Khan Younis, Sunday, Aug. 11, 2024. (AP)

Hamas will not participate in the meetings taking place in the Qatari capital Doha tomorrow, Thursday, over a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange deal with the Israeli occupation entity, a senior Resistance official told Al Mayadeen.

The official indicated on Wednesday that the Palestinian Resistance movement refuses to start negotiations unless they are based on the last ceasefire proposal presented on July 2.

In addition, Hamas asserted that Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has set new conditions that undermine the negotiation process.

On Tuesday, a source within Hamas confirmed to Reuters that the movement is holding on to its demand, calling for the implementation of the ceasefire agreement the movement approved on July 2 and compelling "Israel" to comply with it instead of engaging in new rounds of negotiations.

The source denied allegations published by CNN that the movement's representatives were scheduled to attend the Doha meetings, asserting that all such claims were "incorrect".

The source also stressed that "what we [Hamas] need is implementation, not more talks," consistent with a previous statement issued by the movement.

We will not engage in talks that provide cover for Netanyahu: Hamas

On his part, Hamas representative Ahmad Abdel Hadi told Al Mayadeen that "the current atmosphere is clearly one of deceit and stalling by Netanyahu, killing time while the Axis [of Resistance] prepares to respond to the assassinations of martyrs Ismail Haniyeh and Fouad Shokor."

"The intention is to bring the [Hamas] movement back to square one, which is not in the interest of our Palestinian people," he stressed, making it clear that Hamas will not take part in negotiations that provide cover for Netanyahu and his "extremist government".

The Hamas official pointed out that the assassination of the movement's political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and the Al-Tabieen school massacre in Gaza City confirm that Netanyahu is intent on escalating the aggression.

He told Al Mayadeen that Hamas' position is based on a firm conviction that Thursday's negotiations would start from a stage prior to square one, noting that the movement has found it unproductive to start from points that have already been surpassed.

Abdel Hadi emphasized that the Hamas movement is ready for detailed discussions only if the negotiators adhere to the July 2 paper.

Palestinian factions side with Hamas position

Meanwhile, senior PFLP official Maher al-Taher considered that "Netanyahu is deceiving on the issue of resuming negotiations," asserting that the Resistance has said it "will not participate in negotiations that lead to further massacres against the Palestinian people."

Al-Taher told Al Mayadeen that if the Resistance receives specific guarantees from mediators, "it may reconsider its stance on the negotiations."

On his part, the Media Relations official of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement (PIJ), Rasmi Abu Issa, told Al Mayadeen that Hamas is negotiating in the name of all the Palestinian Resistance factions, stressing that its position is one already agreed upon by all.

Speaking with Al Mayadeen, he stressed that the Resistance's decision is unified, vowing, "We will not go to negotiations that allow Netanyahu to gain free time."

"The Resistance is the side most keen to stop the massacre against our people, and the world knows who is obstructing the negotiations and where the problem lies," Abu Issa maintained, stressing that in the face of the Israeli intransigence, "the Resistance has no choice but to fight.'

"We are certain that the response of the Axis of Resistance is coming, and these negotiations are only meant to buy time," he concluded.

This comes after US President Joe Biden, Qatar's Emir Tamim Bin Hamad al-Thani, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi released a couple of days ago a joint statement calling on "Israel" and the Palestinian Resistance group to finalize the ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal on Thursday.

In response to the trilateral statement, Hamas affirmed on Saturday that since the onset of the Israeli aggression on Gaza, it has been committed to supporting the mediation efforts led by Egypt and Qatar to secure a ceasefire and end the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people and has consistently backed any initiative that aims to halt the aggression.

It confirmed that it has engaged in numerous negotiation rounds and demonstrated all necessary flexibility and positivity to achieve the goals and interests of the Palestinian people, halt the bloodshed, and end the genocide.

However, Hamas pointed out that the Israeli occupation met this approach with rejection, continuing its massacres against the Palestinian people and reiterating its stance that it was not serious about a permanent ceasefire, with its aggressive actions standing as clear evidence of this.

Despite Hamas' awareness, shared with the mediators in Egypt and Qatar, of the occupation’s true motives and the stance of its prime minister, the movement said it still responded to the latest agreement on July 2, 2024.

Yet, according to Hamas, the Israeli occupation met this by introducing new conditions that had not been raised throughout the negotiation process and escalated its aggression against the Palestinian people, committing further massacres, which culminated in the assassination of its political leader Ismail Haniyeh, which confirms "Israel's" intentions to continue the aggression and not reach a ceasefire agreement.

The Palestinian Resistance group said that even after the announcement of the trilateral statement, "Israel" committed a heinous crime, massacring displaced people at al-Tabieen school in Gaza's al-Daraj neighborhood during dawn prayers on August 10 and leaving more than one hundred civilians killed and over 250 others injured.

Hamas said that in light of these developments and out of a sense of responsibility and concern for the Palestinian people and their interests, it calls on the mediators to present a plan to implement what they proposed to the movement, which was agreed on, on July 2, based on US President Joe Biden’s vision and Security Council Resolution 2735.

Elsewhere, the Palestinian Resistance group stressed that the mediators should compel "Israel" to comply with the plan, instead of pursuing further rounds of negotiations or new proposals that would provide cover for the occupation’s aggression and grant it more time to continue its genocide against the Palestinian people.