This photo taken in Beit Lahya shows smoke rising in the adjacent Jabalia neighborhood in northern Gaza during an Israeli strike on Nov. 1, 2024. (Credit: AFP)
Hamas has refused to consider a proposal for a short cease-fire in the war in Gaza put forward by mediating countries because it does not meet "the needs of the Palestinians," a movement official said on Friday.
A Hamas delegation received the proposal during a meeting on Monday in Doha with representatives from Egypt and Qatar, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.
The proposal included the entry of humanitarian aid into the besieged territory and a limited exchange of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel for hostages taken in Gaza since Hamas's attack on Israeli soil on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the war.
However, "the proposal does not include a permanent halt to the aggression, the withdrawal of the Israeli army from Gaza, or the return of the displaced people" affected by the fighting that has been ongoing for more than a year, he stated, reiterating the conditions set by Hamas for a cease-fire.
"The proposal does not address our people's needs for security, stability, aid, and reconstruction, nor does it allow for the normal opening of crossings, especially the Rafah crossing," in the south of the territory, which Israel controls, the official said.
The Palestinians want "a complete and permanent cease-fire, the total withdrawal of (the Israeli army) from Gaza, the return of the displaced, and the lifting of the siege," he reiterated.
