Hamas agreed to the condition set by the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal that it would not govern the Gaza Strip during the implementation of the next phase of the agreement, Arab media reported on Saturday, citing senior officials.
On Thursday, senior official Osama Hamdan told Qatar-based Al Araby TV that the Palestinian terror group will be ready to negotiate the second phase of the hostage-ceasefire agreement from Monday.
Additionally, Walla reported that Hamdan emphasized Hamas’ commitment to the agreement and quoted him stating, “If Israel fulfills its obligations, then we will continue to release the hostages as agreed on Saturday or in the remaining days to come.”
The implementation of the deal’s phase two is contingent on Hamas backing down from governing the Gaza Strip.
Ceasefire on a rocky path
Hamas initially announced on its Telegram channel on Monday that they were going to cancel Saturday’s hostage release due to Israel’s violation of the ceasefire agreement.
Hamas said Israel had violated the ceasefire agreement by delaying the return of displaced peoples to the north and blocking supplies from entering the Gaza Strip.
“During the past three weeks, the resistance leadership has monitored the enemy’s violations and failure to abide by the terms of the agreement,” Hamas said.
The violations include “delaying the return of displaced people to the northern Gaza Strip, targeting them with shelling and gunfire in various areas of the Gaza Strip, and not allowing relief supplies of all kinds to enter as agreed upon, while the resistance has implemented all its obligations.”
Hamas stated that postponing the next release of hostages would serve as a “warning message” intended to pressure Israel to strictly adhere to the ceasefire agreement.
“Hamas intends for this announcement to be made a full five days before the date of handing over the prisoners, but it is to give the mediators sufficient opportunity to put pressure on the occupation to carry out its obligations and to keep the door open to carrying out the exchange on time if the occupation commits to what it is.”
Yuval Barnea contributed to this article.
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