Hamas and the Islamic Jihad terror group operating in Gaza have rejected an Egyptian-led ceasefire proposal with Israel that would have seen the militants relinquish power in return for an end to the war, sources said.
The terrorists, who carried out the massacre on October 7 in Israel, have refused to take part in one of the biggest conditions set by negotiators in Cairo on Sunday: ending Hamas rule in Gaza by forming a Palestinian parliament and holding free elections. , according to two Egyptian security sources.
The terrorist organization instead reiterated that the only thing they were willing to discuss was a prisoner exchange that would see more than 100 Israeli hostages released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
But a Hamas official who was in Cairo during the talks added that even a prisoner exchange would only take place once Israel had withdrawn from war-torn Gaza.
“Hamas seeks to end the Israeli aggression against our people, the massacres and massacres, and we are discussing with our Egyptian brothers how to do that,” the official told Reuters.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad appear to have rejected proposals for permanent peace in war-torn Gaza. AFP via Getty Images Palestinian women sob over relatives killed during Israeli airstrikes Monday. AFP via Getty Images
“We also said that aid for our people must continue and must increase, and it must reach all the people in the north and the south,” the Hamas official added. “After the invasion is stopped and aid increases, we are ready to discuss a prisoner exchange.”
While previous peace talks have discussed exchanging one hostage for every three freed Palestinian women and children, Islamic Jihad leaders are now demanding a different approach.
The terrorist group claims that the only fair exchange is all hostages for all prisoners, according to Egyptian sources.
There were about 5,250 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails before the war, but that number has almost doubled after thousands more were arrested in the conflict along the West Bank since October 7, according to the Palestinian Prisoners Association.
It is believed that more than 100 Israeli hostages are still in captivity in Gaza.
Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh is in Cairo talking to Egyptian negotiators. Iranian Foreign Ministry/AFP via Getty Images
But while the two sides are reportedly far from a ceasefire, Izzat al-Risheq, a member of Hamas’ political bureau, has stated that peace talks are not off the table, claiming that the Gaza group has not rejected Egypt’s plan. .
“The leadership of the movement is trying with all its might to stop the invasion and massacre of our people completely and not temporarily,” he told Al Jazeera. “Our people want to stop the aggression and not wait for a temporary ceasefire and a partial ceasefire for a short period, after which the aggression and violence will continue.”
Egypt’s plan focuses on three phases, the first of which involves a two-week ceasefire agreement that will see 40 hostages released in exchange for 120 prisoners.
Hamas has said it will not agree to any ceasefire until Israel withdraws from Gaza, where more than 20,000 people have been reported killed. AFP via Getty Images
The second phase involves the establishment of a new government in Gaza, with the final step calling for permanent peace and the freedom of all hostages.
Despite apparent reluctance from the terrorist group to accept the proposal, Israel also appears ready to reject it, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterating that the war will only end when the terrorist group is destroyed.
“Whoever talks about quitting — no. We are not stopping,” Netanyahu said during a visit to northern Gaza on Monday. “This will continue until the end. Until we get it done. Nothing less than that.”
The terrorist group also demanded increased aid for Palestinian refugees displaced by the war. AFP via Getty Images
He repeated similar sentiments later in a speech to Israel’s parliament on Monday, adding that the best way to free the remaining hostages in Gaza was to maintain “military pressure,” the Times of Israel reported.
The comments drew jeers and jeers from several hostage representatives and families attending the meeting, with one relative shouting, “We don’t have time!”
Some families shouted, “Now! Now! Now!,” and held up a poster that read, “What if that’s your brother?” and “What if that was your father?”
With Postal wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
