On June 6, Israel bombed a school in central Gaza’s Al-Nuseirat refugee camp. Photo: Struggle La Lucha.
Hamas sent a letter to the Palestinian factions and Arab parties regarding the ongoing ceasefire negotiations, which Quds Network (https://qudsn.co/post/205116) obtained and translated by RNN on June 6.
In the message, Hamas stated that, in agreement with the resistance factions, it has always shown flexibility and positivity towards the efforts of mediators throughout all previous rounds of negotiations, according to Quds Network.
This culminated in the announcement of the acceptance (https://t.me/PalestineResist/38531) of the mediators’ proposal on May 6th (https://t.me/PalestineResist/38580), when the movement found that the proposal included the necessary foundations and aligned with the logic of permanently ending the war, responding to our people’s demands, including a permanent cessation of aggression and fire, a complete withdrawal from the Strip, the return of displaced persons, the flow of humanitarian aid, reconstruction, and a serious prisoner exchange deal.
Excerpts can be found below:
“The occupation rejected the mediators’ proposal and responded with blatant aggression on Rafah and the occupation of the crossing. They committed many massacres and burned the tents of the displaced along with their occupants, and continued the starvation war, which is a systematic policy to exterminate the Palestinian people. All of this led to the obstruction of the mediators’ efforts.”
“When President Biden made his statements, the movement announced its welcome of what he said because it provided the necessary foundations to reach an agreement that achieves a permanent ceasefire, the withdrawal of the occupation army from the Strip, the flow of large amounts of aid, the return of the displaced, reconstruction, and prisoner exchange. The movement did not hesitate to announce its positive stance immediately towards these statements as they are in line with the May 6th paper and contain the required foundations, the most important of which is a permanent ceasefire and complete withdrawal from the Strip.”
“When the movement reviewed the content of the proposal mentioned by President Biden, which he said was the “israeli” proposal, it found it devoid of the positive foundations mentioned in Biden’s statements. There is a difference between what is in the paper and what Biden said, causing a lot of confusion and debate. Is what Biden spoke about his personal interpretation of the paper, or are they verbal agreements with “israeli” parties, or something else?”
“After reviewing the content of the “israeli” proposal, it was found that it does not set the correct foundations for the required agreement. It does not guarantee a permanent ceasefire but only a temporary one. It does not closely link the three phases stipulated, but on the contrary, it has dismantled the bridges that transition the agreement from one phase to another, aiming to disrupt the unity of the agreement in all its stages, reducing it to a single phase where the aggression stops temporarily, while their forces remain on the ground of the Strip. In exchange, the occupation obtains the segment of prisoners that concerns them, then resumes the genocide war against our people.”
In its letter, Hamas and the resistance factions adhered to the correct foundations for reaching an agreement and expressed their readiness to agree to any agreement that includes those foundations, which are fundamental principles, “for there is no meaning to any agreement that does not explicitly stipulate a permanent ceasefire, and there is no meaning to an agreement that allows occupation forces to remain on our land and only achieves what the occupation wants in terms of releasing their prisoners while continuing the genocide and starvation war against our people.”
In the letter, Hamas noted its awareness of the risks of a Security Council resolution being issued before an agreement is reached between the parties, in addition to the preemption of this with a draft resolution aimed at pressuring the movement and Palestinian factions.
