Hamas Says Close to Truce Deal with Israel
Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas' political bureau, said in a statement that the group had given its response to Qatari officials, who are mediating the indirect talks between Hamas and Israel.
He added that the details of the deal would be announced by Qatar and Egypt "soon."
According to a senior Hamas official, Izzat al-Rishq, the tentative deal includes a five-day halt to hostilities on the ground and a limit to Israeli air strikes over southern Gaza, in exchange for the release of dozens of Israelis held by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, another resistance group.
The deal would also allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza and free hundreds of Palestinians from Israeli prisons, including women and children.
Rishq stressed that any agreement was based on the conditions of the Palestinian resistance, and accused Israel, especially its prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, of trying to sabotage the ceasefire talks.
Read More:
He said Israel wanted to negotiate while continuing its aggression and breaking the will of the resistance, which would never happen. He also said that all the resistance factions in Gaza were united and consulted on the deal, both on the battlefield and in the political arena.
Israel launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 7, after Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Flood in the occupied territories.
The Israeli assault has killed more than 13,000 Palestinians, including over 5,000 children and 3,500 women, and wounded more than 31,000 others.
The occupation regime has also imposed a total siege on the coastal enclave, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there.
Source: Agencies
