Hamas has joined Israel in rejecting President Joe Biden’s efforts to end their conflict in Gaza, with both sides insisting their respective conditions for a permanent ceasefire must be met before they will agree to a temporary halt in fighting.
A Hamas spokesman stated on Tuesday that Israel must commit to a permanent ceasefire and fully withdraw from Gaza. “We are waiting for a clear Israeli stance on this,” said spokesman Osama Hamdan in Beirut.
This statement came a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated that the group’s political and military operations must be eliminated before the conflict can end.
Top Biden administration officials have urged Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the US and European Union, to accept the proposal that the president said on Friday had Israel’s backing.
However, this plan — a three-part roadmap from ceasefire to a permanent deal — was quickly questioned by Israeli officials over the weekend.
The main point of contention seems to be the future of Hamas, which Israel insists must be dismantled before any long-term plans can be made for Gaza or for a broader Palestinian state.
Netanyahu is under pressure from right-wing allies who have threatened to leave his ruling coalition if he agrees to end the war without dismantling Hamas. Simultaneously, over 100,000 people demonstrated in Israel over the weekend, calling for an end to the war.
Biden, in a rare interview with Time Magazine, suggested that Netanyahu might be prolonging the war in Gaza due to his own political considerations.
Meanwhile, officials from Qatar, which is mediating the talks, said Israel has yet to provide a position on the plan that is accepted by its full coalition government. A Foreign Ministry spokesman issued a statement on Tuesday urging countries to press both sides to accept Biden’s plan.
