Hamas called on the mediators to intervene “to put an end to Netanyahu’s tricks and crimes” and urged “the international community and the United Nations to stand up to their legal and humanitarian responsibilities.
The Palestinian Movement Hamas has expressed its willingness to be flexible and maintain a positive attitude in order to facilitate a potential prisoner exchange deal with Israel, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of obstructing the negotiations.
In a statement shared by the Resistance News Network’s Telegram channel, Hamas called on the mediators to intervene “to put an end to Netanyahu’s tricks and crimes”. It also urged,
“The international community and the United Nations to stand up to their legal and humanitarian responsibilities and pressure to stop the crime of genocide that our people are being subjected to, and to hold the leaders of the occupation accountable for their crimes.”
According to the Palestinian group, “Netanyahu is placing more obstacles to the negotiations, escalating his aggression and crimes against our people, and intensifying his attempts to forcibly displace them in order to thwart all efforts to reach an agreement.”
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Israeli officials have previously expressed concerns that Netanyahu might obstruct the potential exchange deal.
The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation (KAN) quoted sources indicating that security chiefs were shocked by Netanyahu’s statement on the exchange deal.
Netanyahu’s office claimed that the proposal Israel had agreed to allow for the return of the captives without compromising the war’s goals. The statement said that any deal must prevent weapons smuggling to Hamas from Egypt and the return of fighters to northern Gaza.
Yair’s Offer
Israel’s opposition leader Yair Lapid has pledged to support Prime Minister Netanyahu if he agrees to a prisoner swap deal with Palestinian Resistance groups, despite threats from coalition partners to withdraw from the government.
“I am prepared, if necessary, to join the government in order to approve the deal,” ensuring Netanyahu does not have to choose between the deal and his position as prime minister.
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“There is a deal to return the kidnapped soldiers on the table, and it is not true that Netanyahu must choose between the exchange deal and continuing to serve as prime minister,” Lapid reportedly said, stating that he promised Netanyahu “to give him a parliamentary safety net and I will fulfill my promise.”
For his part, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has urged not to miss the current opportunity to secure a Gaza cease-fire deal that includes a prisoner swap with Hamas.
“The military pressure has created conditions that allow us to move forward with a deal. We need to take advantage of the military pressure to push forward with a deal and not to miss it,” Gallant said.
‘Defeat and Humiliation’
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich voiced his opposition to the prisoner exchange agreement, describing it as a “defeat and humiliation for Israel, and a victory for Sinwar.”
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“Mr. Prime Minister, this is not an absolute victory. This is a complete failure, and we will not be part of the surrender deal with Hamas,” Smotrich stated.
Upcoming indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel will be held in Doha and Cairo, to discuss a potential agreement to release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli detainees and a Gaza ceasefire.
(PC, AJA)
Netanyahu, Gvir, Smotrich et al; are more of an existential threat to the people of
” Israel ” , which is really Palestine, than Hamas is.