The Palestinian armed group is committed to the terms of the ceasefire agreement with Israel, a senior official has said
Palestinian armed group Hamas has rejected claims by the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it is creating a last-minute “crisis” in finalizing the deal to release the hostages held in Gaza.
On Wednesday, US President-elect Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had struck an agreement securing the release of the remaining hostages. According to multiple media outlets, the agreement approved in Qatar involves a 42-day truce and an exchange of prisoners, including all Israelis taken captive in the October 7, 2023 Hamas incursion into the country.
“Hamas is committed to the ceasefire agreement, which was announced by the mediators,” Izzat al-Risheq, a senior member of the group’s political bureau, said in a post on Telegram on Thursday.
The statement came shortly after Netanyahu’s office accused the Palestinian group of “reneging on the understandings” reached as part of the hostage deal and “creating a last-minute crisis that is preventing an agreement.”
“The Israeli cabinet will not convene [to approve the deal] until the mediators notify Israel that Hamas has accepted all elements of the agreement,” it stressed.
Israel intensified its airstrikes across Gaza shortly after the ceasefire and hostage release deal was announced, Reuters reported, citing the civil emergency service and residents in the enclave.
The attacks came as people in Gaza took to the streets to celebrate the truce, which is expected to start on Sunday.
At least 32 people were killed in “heavy Israeli bombardment,” especially of Gaza City, late on Wednesday, the agency said. The strikes continued early on Thursday, with homes being destroyed in Rafah in southern Gaza, Nuseirat in central Gaza, and in northern Gaza, it added.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) blamed Hamas for firing a rocket into Israel on Thursday, with the incident causing no casualties.
Israel began its military operation in Gaza 15 months ago in response to the cross-border raid by Hamas, in which around 1,200 people died and 250 others were taken prisoner. At least 94 of them still remain in captivity. Nearly 47,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 104,000 wounded in Israeli attacks in the enclave, according to the latest data from Gaza’s health ministry.