Abu Obaida, spokesman for the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement. Photo: AFP.
Hamas’s armed wing has warned that Israel’s continuing airstrikes and shelling in Gaza after the announcement of a ceasefire deal are risking captives meant to be released.
“Any aggression and shelling at this stage by the enemy could turn the freedom of a prisoner into a tragedy,” the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said on Telegram Thursday.
Dozens of Israeli captives are held in Gaza which has been the target of the most ferocious Israeli onslaught since October 2023.
Abu Obeida, spokesman for the Qassam Brigades, said an Israeli strike had hit a place where one of the women to be freed “in the first stage of the ceasefire deal was located”.
Earlier in the day, Hamas reaffirmed its commitment to the ceasefire agreement with Israel, hours after Israeli officials accused the Gaza-based Palestinian group of attempting to alter the deal’s terms at the last moment.
“We are committed to the ceasefire agreement announced by the mediators,” senior Hamas official Izzat al-Rishq said in a statement.
He was responding to allegations from the Israeli prime minister’s office that Hamas had reneged on key aspects of the arrangement.
Israeli officials stated that the cabinet would not convene until mediators confirm Hamas’s full acceptance of the deal.
The Israeli cabinet session to ratify the agreement has been delayed, according to Israeli media outlets.
Qatar Reports Progress on Hamas’ End in Ceasefire Talks: ‘Israeli’ Media
Negotiators remain in the Qatari capital Doha, working to finalize the list of Palestinian prisoners slated for release, even after Qatari officials announced a breakthrough agreement on Wednesday.
At least 21 Palestinian children and 25 women are among 80 people killed in Gaza as relentless Israeli air attacks intensify after the truce announcement.
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri denounced the strikes as a “desperate attempt” by Israel to undermine the deal, demanding Israel’s adherence to the agreement.
Backed by the United States and its Western allies, Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, after Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Flood inside southern Israeli occupied territories.
Ever since, at least 46,788 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children. Thousands more are missing and presumed dead under rubble.
On November 21 last year, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
(PressTV)
