Recently, Hamas's senior ** in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan, revealed at a public press conference that Hamas has not yet reached a final agreement with Israel on the ceasefire issue, and said that more time is needed to announce its position.
Osama said Hamas leaders were scrutinizing the framework of a ceasefire agreement drawn up by senior Israeli, Qatari, Egyptian and U.S. leaders, but noted that there were still some details that needed further refinement, Osama reported. "We will soon declare our position, based on our deep desire to put an end to the aggression against our people as soon as possible," he stressed. ”
Osama further noted that Hamas has always shown openness and willingness to engage in dialogue on any initiative aimed at ending the brutal aggression against the Palestinian people. He acknowledged that Hamas had received the text of the armistice agreement drafted by the Paris mediators, but stressed that no agreement had yet been reached on it.
Since 7 October last year, when Hamas launched a cross-border raid on Israel, igniting the fighting, the conflict between the two sides has claimed the lives of thousands of people, the vast majority of them innocent civilians. In addition, Israel has taken some 250 Hamas members hostage. Although some 100 people were released during a one-week temporary ceasefire at the end of November last year, 132 people remain in captivity in Gaza, at least 27 of whom have allegedly been killed. This tragic situation continues to exacerbate tensions and antagonism between the two sides.
Health authorities in the Gaza Strip have reported that Israeli airstrikes in Gaza have killed at least 27,238 people, the vast majority of whom are women and children. Agence France-Presse, citing sources within Hamas, said the current proposal for a three-phase truce is tentatively envisaged as a six-week suspension of fighting, during which there will be an exchange of Israeli hostages with Palestinian prisoners, and a possible extension of the truce as appropriate.
Osama strongly condemned the "disinformation campaign" launched by Israel aimed at discrediting Hamas's position and accused the Israeli side of rejecting all initiatives put forward so far in order to continue its aggression in Gaza. In addition, he criticized the decision of some countries to suspend funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) as "an irresponsible move based on Zionist lies and collective punishment."