In apparent blow to Biden plan, Hamas leader demands complete end to Gaza war
CAIRO/JERUSALEM: Hamas’ leader said on Wednesday the group would seek a permanent end to the war in Gaza and an Israeli withdrawal under a ceasefire plan, an apparent blow to a truce proposal presented last week by US President Joe Biden.
Meanwhile, Israel said fighting would not stop during ceasefire talks, and launched a new assault on the central part of the Gaza Strip, near the last town not yet captured by Israeli tanks.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh’s remarks appeared to be a response from the Palestinian militant group to a proposal presented by Biden last week. Washington had said it was waiting to hear a response from Hamas to what Biden described as an Israeli initiative.
“The movement and resistance groups will deal seriously and positively with any agreement based on a comprehensive end to the offensive and a full withdrawal and the exchange of prisoners,” Haniyeh said.
Asked if Haniyeh’s comments were the group’s response to Biden, a senior Hamas official responded to a Reuters text message with a “thumbs up” emoji.
Washington is still pushing hard to reach an agreement. CIA Director William Burns met with senior Qatari and Egyptian mediators in Doha on Wednesday to discuss the ceasefire proposal.
All attempts at a ceasefire since a brief week-long truce in November have failed, with Hamas sticking to its demand for a permanent end to the conflict while Israel says it is only willing to discuss a temporary truce until the terror group is defeated.
Over the past several months, Biden has repeatedly declared that a ceasefire was close, but no ceasefire materialized. Notably, in February Biden said Israel had agreed to a ceasefire by the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on March 10, a deadline that passed with military operations in full swing.
But last week’s announcement came with far more fanfare from the White House, and at a time when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under growing domestic political pressure to end the eight-month war and negotiate the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
Three US officials told Reuters that Biden had deliberately announced the proposal without warning the Israelis after obtaining its consent, in order to reduce the scope for Netanyahu to back down.
“We didn’t ask for permission to announce the proposal,” said a senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to speak freely about the talks. “We told the Israelis we were going to give a speech on the situation in Gaza. We didn’t go into detail about what it was.”
Hamas, which rules Gaza, launched the war by attacking Israeli territory on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. About half the hostages were freed in a week-long ceasefire of the war so far in November.
More than 36,000 people have been killed in Israel’s military assault on Gaza, and thousands more are feared trapped under rubble, according to health officials in the region.
Israel lukewarm
Although Biden described the ceasefire proposal as an Israeli offer, the Israeli government has been publicly indifferent. A top Netanyahu aide confirmed on Sunday that Israel had made the offer, even though it was “not a good deal”.
Full details have not been published, but Israel insists it will not sign any resolution that calls for a halt to the war before Hamas is completely destroyed. Meanwhile, the militants have shown no sign of surrendering and their main leaders are still at large.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said of the ceasefire proposal on Wednesday, “This framework gives Israel the opportunity to meet all of its objectives: destroying Hamas militarily and its governance capabilities, repatriating our hostages, and ensuring that Gaza can never again pose a threat to us.”
Right-wing members of Netanyahu’s government have vowed to step down if he agrees to a peace deal that leaves Hamas intact, a move that could force new elections and end the political career of Israel’s longest-serving leader. Centrist opponents who joined Netanyahu’s war cabinet in a show of unity at the start of the conflict have also threatened to quit, saying his government has no plan.
New attack in central Gaza
Meanwhile, Defense Minister Yoav Galant said there would be no let-up in Israeli aggression as long as talks on a ceasefire proposal continue.
“Any negotiations with Hamas will only take place in the event of an attack,” Galant said in comments reported by Israeli media after boarding a warplane to inspect the Gaza front.
Israel on Wednesday announced a new offensive against Hamas in central Gaza, where Palestinian medics said air strikes had killed dozens of people.
The armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they exchanged fire with Israeli forces across the area and fired anti-tank rockets and shells.
“The sound of bombing didn’t stop all night,” said Aya, 30, a displaced woman from Deir al-Balah, a small town in the central Gaza Strip. Deir al-Balah is now the only major population center in the territory that has not yet been attacked by Israeli tanks.
Two children were among those lying dead on Wednesday at the city’s Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, one of the last hospitals still functioning in Gaza. Mourners said the children were killed along with their mother, who had been unable to leave the house even when others in the neighbourhood had left.
“This is not war, this is destruction that cannot be expressed in words,” said his father, Abu Mohammad Abu Saif.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – Reuters)