On Sunday, May 12th, 2024, Hamas slammed US President Joe Biden for linking a Gaza cease-fire to the release of Israeli hostages held captive by the Hamas’s military wing of Al-Qassam.
A day earlier, Biden made pro-Israel remarks as saying a cease-fire in Gaza would be possible as soon as “tomorrow” if Hamas released Israelis in its captivity.
This position “is a regression from the results of the last round of negotiations, which led to our approval of a proposal drawn by mediators in Egypt and Qatar, with the US knowledge,” Hamas said in a statement.
Last week, Hamas okayed a proposal drawn by Egypt and Qatar for a cease-fire in Gaza in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages, who are believed to be nearly 130 Israelis following its Oct. 7 cross-border attack.
Despite that Hamas said it has shown flexibility during all rounds of negotiations to reach a cease-fire deal in Gaza, Israeli PM Netanyahu is reluctant to abide by the deal and reckoned the deal proposal did not meet its key demands.
He further decided to push ahead with an operation in Rafah, which is home to more than 1.5 million displaced people. Many experts viewd the invasion as “military pressure on Hamas with the goal of making progress on releasing the hostages and the other war aims.”
“However, terrorist [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and his government rushed to overturn this path by launching their aggression on our people in Rafah, Jabalia, and Gaza,” Hamas added in the statement.
It further said Biden’s position once again confirms the US bias towards the criminal policy” pursued by ‘Israel’ and shows its continued political cover and military support for the genocide waged against our people.”
Has demanded an end to Israel’s ongoing military offensive on the Gaza enclave, claimed the lives of 35,000 Palestinians and injury of over 76,600, in return for any hostage swap.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). An interim ruling in January said it is “plausible” that Tel Aviv is committing genocide in Gaza, ordering it to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
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