Hamdan confirms Hamas acceptance of truce terms

BEIRUT — Hamas spokesperson in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan, confirmed the group's acceptance of terms laid out in a truce agreement presented by mediators in Egypt, during a press conference held on Tuesday evening.

Speaking from Beirut, Hamdan said the Hamas delegation had arrived in Cairo from Doha for what many hope is the final stretch of talks, amid intense diplomatic efforts to bring the two sides to an agreement before Israeli troops enter the densely populated southern Gaza city of Rafah.

Cairo is currently hosting delegations from Qatar, the United States, Hamas and Israel, according to reports from Egypt's state-run al-Qahera News TV and Haaretz. CIA chief William Burns will travel from Cairo to Israel on Wednesday afternoon to meet with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials.

"We reached this agreement after weeks and months of complex negotiations," Hamdan told reporters, "during which we showed flexibility in the best interests of our people in Gaza, but without ever abandoning our demands."

The demands or "red lines," as often referred to by Hamdan, consist of an immediate and total halt to fighting in Gaza, a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the enclave, the gradual return of Palestinians to the areas where they live, the reconstruction of destroyed towns and, finally, the exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners.

Hamdan was careful to specify that "all the Palestinian factions of the Resistance in Gaza agree to accept the conditions of this agreement," naming each one individually.

Hamas presented a plan in which the various stages of the truce would be implemented gradually, Hamdan explained, "to ensure that it runs smoothly, unlike the [Israeli] enemy, who was pressing for the hostages to be released in a single stage, with the aim of ending and restarting the fighting."

Hamdan said he had received "guarantees" from the mediators that, should the agreement be finalized, its provisions would be adhered to. He blasted Netanyahu's government throughout the press conference, referring to it as a "Nazi regime."

"Hamas' 'Yes' to this agreement has put Netanyahu's back against the wall and shown who bears responsibility for the delay in negotiations," said the Palestinian official. He called on the US administration to "question its unconditional support for Netanyahu's government," and to act responsibly and credibly in supporting peace efforts.

Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Hamas' latest truce proposal fell far short of Israel's requirements, claiming that military pressure was still needed to return the hostages held in Gaza.

A "dangerous escalation"

The Hamas spokesperson also addressed the subject of the Israeli incursion at the Rafah border crossing in southern Gaza on Tuesday morning, calling it a "dangerous escalation" as it "violates all international laws."

Hamdan accused the Israeli prime minister of having ordered troops advance on Rafah on the day Hamas announced it had approved the truce agreement, in order to derail peace efforts and "for his own reasons, which are no longer a secret to anyone." He warned that Hamas "refuses to release the hostages under military pressure."

"I warn the enemy that any decision to enter Rafah will not be an easy one, and that he will emerge defeated as he has been everywhere else in Gaza, thanks to the resistance of the Palestinian people."