Negotiations with Israel for a cease-fire in Gaza and a hostage deal are stalled despite mediator United States “painting a rosy picture,” Palestinian resistance group Hamas told Türkiye on Sunday.
According to Turkish diplomatic sources, Hamas officials contacted Türkiye over the weekend and provided information about the negotiation process with Israel.
The officials pointed out that although the Americans portrayed the progress of the negotiations in an optimistic manner, this was not actually the case.
According to Hamas, the conditions put forward by Israel have even fallen short of the scenario supported by the U.N. Security Council on June 10 and the conditions approved by Hamas on July 2.
It stressed that Israel wants Hamas to accept Israel’s presence in the Philadelphi Corridor, to control the checkpoints in the Netzarim Corridor and to monitor Gazans passing from south to north and to veto 100 names from a list of about 300 prisoners that Hamas wants to be released.
Another demand involves the number of Palestinians that Israel wants to be exiled from Gaza and Ramallah. In this context, Israel wants 200 people to leave Palestine.
The statement added that Israel did not even respond to the mediators’ proposals in last week’s talks.
According to Hamas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ultimate goal is to buy time to continue military operations.
Indirect talks mediated by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt have failed to agree on a permanent cease-fire and a hostage-prisoner swap. A weeklong truce in November saw the exchange of some of the around 250 people who were held during the Hamas incursion last October, in return for Palestinians held by Israel.
Tensions between the two sides escalated after the July 31 assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran’s capital Tehran. The resistance group and Iran have blamed Israel for the attack, vowing revenge.
Türkiye has been fiercely critical of Israel’s brutal offensive in Gaza that has killed 40,000 people, mainly women and children, which it and others say amounts to genocide, and has halted all bilateral trade. It has also slammed many Western allies for their support of Israel and repeatedly called for Muslim unity to facilitate a desperately needed cease-fire.
Ankara urges Israel to reciprocate the constructive approach of the Palestinians in cease-fire negotiations and the international community to pressure Netanyahu’s government.
Türkiye is a staunch supporter of Hamas, which it describes as a resistance movement, unlike the Western countries which mostly define it as a terrorist group. It also has halted all trade with Israel and said it had decided to join South Africa’s initiative to have Israel tried for genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
