Hamas says group would lay down arms if independent Palestinian state created

A senior political official Hamas told the Associated Press that the Islamic insurgent group is willing to agree to a truce of five years or more with Israel and lay down arms and become a political party if an independent Palestinian state is established on the pre-1967 borders.

The statements of Khalil al-Hayya in an interview on Wednesday coincide with the impasse in negotiations for a ceasefire, which have been ongoing for months. The suggestion of possible disarmament seemed to be a major concession from the group, which is officially committed to the destruction of Israel.

LOOK HERE: “Tension in Colombia has increased”: pro-Palestine protests shake US universities

But it is unlikely that Israel will consider this scenario. After the deadly attack of October 7th who unleashed the war, promised to crush Hamas and its current government strongly opposes the creation of a Palestinian state in the territories captured in Six Day War from 1967.

Al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official who represented Palestinian insurgents in negotiations for a ceasefire and the release of hostages, struck a tone that was at times defiant and at times more conciliatory.

In statements to the AP in IstanbulAl-Hayya said that Hamas wants to join the Palestine Liberation Organizationcommanded by the rival faction Fatáto form a unified government to Link It is West Bank. He said his group would accept “a fully sovereign Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza and the return of Palestinian refugees in accordance with international resolutions” along Israel’s pre-1967 border.

If that happened, he noted, Hamas’ military wing would dissolve.

“All the experiences of the people who fought against the occupation, when they became independent and won their rights and their State, what did these forces do? They became political parties and their defense combat forces became the national army”, he indicated.

Over the years, Hamas has at times moderated its public stance on the possibility of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. But officially his political program “rejects any alternative to total liberation Palestinefrom the river to the sea“, in reference to the area between the Jordan river it’s him Mediterranean Seawhich includes the lands that today form Israel.

MORE INFORMATION: Gaza: 392 bodies found in mass graves in Khan Younis, some with signs of torture

Al-Hayya did not clarify whether his apparent acceptance of a two-state solution would amount to an end to the Palestinian conflict with Israel or would be an intermediate step toward the group’s stated goal of destroying its rival.

There was no immediate reaction from Israel or the Palestinian authority, the internationally recognized autonomous government that was expelled from Gaza by Hamas in 2007, a year after winning Palestinian parliamentary elections. After leaving the Strip, the Palestinian Authority administers the semi-autonomous areas of the West Bank occupied by Israel.

The Palestinian Authority intends to establish an independent state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza — areas captured by Israel in the 1967 war Although the international community largely supports the two-state solution, the conservative government of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin NetanyahuShe rejects.

The war in Gaza has lasted almost seven months and ceasefire negotiations are at a standstill. The conflict began after the October 7 attack on southern Israel, in which Hamas-led insurgents killed around 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and took another 250 hostages. The subsequent Israeli air and ground campaign in the besieged enclave cost the lives of more than 34,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to local health authorities, and displaced almost 80% of its 2.3 million inhabitants.

Israel is now preparing for an offensive on the city of Rafain the south of the territory, where more than a million Palestinians fled.

According to Israel, it has dismantled most of the two dozen battalions that Hamas initially had, but claims that the remaining four are entrenched in Rafah. Furthermore, he states that the operation in the city is necessary to achieve victory over his rival.

Al-Hayya noted that such an offensive will not destroy Hamas. Contacts between the political leadership abroad and the military leadership in Gaza are “uninterrupted”Because of the war, he said, adding that the “Contacts, decisions and guidance are made in consultation” between the two groups.

SEE TOO: More than 40 dead and 60 injured in Israeli attacks in the last 24 hours in Gaza

Israeli forcesThey did not destroy more than 20% of (Hamas’) capabilities, neither human nor on the ground“, he claimed. “If they can’t finish it (Hamas), what is the solution? The solution is to reach a consensus”.

In November, a ceasefire that lasted more than a week led to the release of more than 100 hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israel. But negotiations for a long-term truce and the release of the remaining hostages have stalled, with both sides accusing the other of intransigence. Qatarwho has been a key interlocutor in the process, recently said he is “reevaluating”his role as mediator.

Most of Hamas’ top political officials, who were previously in Qatar, left the country last week to travel to Türkiyewhere the political leader of the group, Ismail Haniyehmet with the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saturday. Al-Hayya denied that a permanent change to his top political post was being prepared and said Hamas wanted Qatar to continue as a mediator in the negotiations.

Israeli authorities and U.S They accused Hamas of not taking a deal seriously. Al-Hayya denied this and stated that he made concessions on the number of Palestinian prisoners who should be released in exchange for Israeli hostages. The group does not know exactly how many are still in Gaza or whether they are still alive, he added.

But he noted that Hamas will not give up its call for a permanent ceasefire and full withdrawal of Israeli troops. Israel has refused and says its campaign will continue until the insurgents are definitively defeated and that it will then maintain a security presence in Gaza.

“If we are not sure that the war will end, why would we hand over the prisoners?” said the Hamas leader about the other hostages.

Al-Hayya also implicitly threatened that Hamas would attack Israel or other forces stationed around the floating dock that the United States is trying to build off the coast of Gaza for aid to arrive by sea. “We categorically reject any non-Palestinian presence in Gaza, whether at sea or on land, and will confront any military force there, Israeli or otherwise, as an occupying power.” he claimed.

ALSO REVIEW: Texas governor says pro-Palestinian students protesting should go to prison

Al-Hayya indicated that Hamas does not regret the October 7 attacks, despite the destruction it brought to Gaza and its population. He denied that Hamas insurgents targeted civilians during the attacks – despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary – and said the operation achieved its aim of drawing global attention back to the Palestinian issue.

Furthermore, he noted that Israeli attempts to eradicate Hamas will ultimately fail to prevent future Palestinian armed uprisings.

“Let’s say they destroyed Hamas. Have the Palestinian people disappeared?“, asked.

Source: Elcomercio

jack

I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.