Hamas decides to continue the war it started after raising impractical demands for a ceasefire
The terrorist group increases its demands in negotiations with Israel including that the IDF completely withdraw from Gaza, among other demands.
(Cordon Press)
Hamas increased its demands to accept the ceasefire proposal with Israel, and according to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, some of these demands are impractical.
Amid intense negotiations, the terrorist group announced that, to reach an agreement and free more hostages, there must be an initial withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Philadelphi Corridor within the first week after the agreement is signed. This corridor, located between Gaza and Egypt, is used by Hamas to smuggle weapons and other goods into Gaza, which Israel has repeatedly denounced.
Likewise, Hamas insists on a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, a permanent ceasefire, and the inclusion of China, Russia and Turkey as guarantors of the agreement, along with the United States, Egypt and Qatar.
As part of the negotiations, the terrorist group has also called for the release of Palestinians detained in Israeli jails. In addition, Hamas said Israel should not be allowed to make public the names of prisoners proposed for release and mentioned Marwan Barghouti, a Palestinian politician imprisoned for his involvement in attacks against Israelis in the 2000s, and who is considered by many to be a potential leader in the Palestinian national cause.
After the announcement of the new demands by Hamas, Blinken, who is in the Middle East promoting the United States peace proposal, denounced Hamas for making the decision "to continue the war" that they started and explained that, although some changes requested were viable, “some are not.”
“We have to see on an urgent basis over the course of the coming days, whether those gaps are bridgeable,” said the U.S. Secretary of State.
These new demands emerged after an Israeli rescue operation of four hostages in Gaza that resulted in numerous Palestinian casualties. According to Palestinian health authorities, 274 Gazans were killed and nearly 700 injured during the operation. However, Israel said it is aware of fewer than 100 Palestinian victims and claimed that most of them were terrorists.
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