Netanyahu wants to 'sabotage mediators' efforts and prolong war': Hamas
Hamas says it is calling on the mediators "to fulfill their responsibilities and compel the occupation (Israel) to implement what has been agreed upon".
Following the recent round of negotiations in Doha, Hamas confirmed "once again that Netanyahu is still putting obstacles in the way of reaching an agreement". / Photo: AA
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has prevented the completion of the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner-hostage swap proposal by setting new conditions during the negotiations on Thursday and Friday in Doha, the Palestinian resistance group Hamas said.
"The new proposal meets Netanyahu's conditions and aligns with them, particularly his refusal of a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and his insistence on continuing the occupation of the Netzarim Junction (which separates the north and south of the Gaza Strip), the Rafah crossing, and the Philadelphi Corridor (in the south)," Hamas said in a statement.
"He also set new conditions in the hostage swap file and retracted from other terms, which obstructs the completion of the deal."
Following the recent round of negotiations in Doha, Hamas confirmed "once again that Netanyahu is still putting obstacles in the way of reaching an agreement, setting new conditions and demands to sabotage the mediators' efforts and prolong the war."
The movement emphasised its commitment to what it agreed upon on July 2, based on the proposal backed by US President Joe Biden and the UN Security Council resolution.
It called on the mediators "to fulfill their responsibilities and compel the occupation (Israeli) to implement what has been agreed upon".
Ceasefire talks in Doha concluded on Friday after presenting "a proposal that narrows the gaps" between Israel and Hamas that is consistent with the principles set out by Biden on May 31.
Biden said in May that Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave. The plan includes a ceasefire, a prisoner-hostage exchange and the reconstruction of Gaza.
But the plan was thrown into disarray last month when Israel assassinated Hamas politburo leader Ismail Haniyeh while he was in Tehran for the Iranian president's inauguration.
Biden said the apparent assassination had "not helped" ceasefire efforts, and the talks were driven into a deep freeze. That killing came just hours after Israel assassinated a top Hezbollah commander in a strike in Beirut.
Israeli PM Netanyahu has also been scuttling any efforts towards a ceasefire. Netanyahu's critics say he is dragging out the war for his own political survival.
His far-right coalition partners have time and again pledged to topple the government if he agrees to a ceasefire, which could trigger elections that might oust him from power.
Hamas says it is calling on the mediators "to fulfill their responsibilities and compel the occupation (Israel) to implement what has been agreed upon".
Following the recent round of negotiations in Doha, Hamas confirmed "once again that Netanyahu is still putting obstacles in the way of reaching an agreement". / Photo: AA
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has prevented the completion of the Gaza ceasefire and prisoner-hostage swap proposal by setting new conditions during the negotiations on Thursday and Friday in Doha, the Palestinian resistance group Hamas said.
"The new proposal meets Netanyahu's conditions and aligns with them, particularly his refusal of a permanent ceasefire, a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and his insistence on continuing the occupation of the Netzarim Junction (which separates the north and south of the Gaza Strip), the Rafah crossing, and the Philadelphi Corridor (in the south)," Hamas said in a statement.
"He also set new conditions in the hostage swap file and retracted from other terms, which obstructs the completion of the deal."
Following the recent round of negotiations in Doha, Hamas confirmed "once again that Netanyahu is still putting obstacles in the way of reaching an agreement, setting new conditions and demands to sabotage the mediators' efforts and prolong the war."
The movement emphasised its commitment to what it agreed upon on July 2, based on the proposal backed by US President Joe Biden and the UN Security Council resolution.
It called on the mediators "to fulfill their responsibilities and compel the occupation (Israeli) to implement what has been agreed upon".
Ceasefire talks in Doha concluded on Friday after presenting "a proposal that narrows the gaps" between Israel and Hamas that is consistent with the principles set out by Biden on May 31.
Biden said in May that Israel presented a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in Gaza and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave. The plan includes a ceasefire, a prisoner-hostage exchange and the reconstruction of Gaza.
But the plan was thrown into disarray last month when Israel assassinated Hamas politburo leader Ismail Haniyeh while he was in Tehran for the Iranian president's inauguration.
Biden said the apparent assassination had "not helped" ceasefire efforts, and the talks were driven into a deep freeze. That killing came just hours after Israel assassinated a top Hezbollah commander in a strike in Beirut.
Israeli PM Netanyahu has also been scuttling any efforts towards a ceasefire. Netanyahu's critics say he is dragging out the war for his own political survival.
His far-right coalition partners have time and again pledged to topple the government if he agrees to a ceasefire, which could trigger elections that might oust him from power.
40,099 Palestinians killed, 92,609 injured in Israeli onslaught since Oct. 7, 2023, Health Ministry says
Ikram Kouachi |18.08.2024 -
Israeli attacks on Gaza continue
ANKARA
The Israeli army killed 25 more Palestinians in attacks in the Gaza Strip, taking the overall death toll to 40,099 since last Oct. 7, the Health Ministry in the enclave said on Sunday.
A ministry statement added that some 92,609 other people have been injured in the assault.
“Israeli forces killed 25 people and injured 72 others in two ‘massacres’ against families in the last 24 hours,” the ministry said.
“Many people are still trapped under rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.
Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.
More than 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.
ANKARA
The Israeli army killed 25 more Palestinians in attacks in the Gaza Strip, taking the overall death toll to 40,099 since last Oct. 7, the Health Ministry in the enclave said on Sunday.
A ministry statement added that some 92,609 other people have been injured in the assault.
“Israeli forces killed 25 people and injured 72 others in two ‘massacres’ against families in the last 24 hours,” the ministry said.
“Many people are still trapped under rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.
Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.
More than 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.
Besieged Gazans share shoes, wear same clothes for months
Finding shoes and clothing is increasingly difficult for the 2.4million people living in the Palestinian territory
| AFP |
Finding shoes and clothing is increasingly difficult for the 2.4million people living in the Palestinian territory
| AFP |
With two-thirds of Gaza's population living in poverty even before the war, many people were forced to sell their clothes once the conflict broke out... but there are no more shoes or clothes to sell. Photo: AFP
For months, Safaa Yassin has dressed her child in the same white bodysuit, an all-too-familiar tale in the Gaza Strip, which has been devastated by 10 months of war.
"When I was pregnant, I dreamed of dressing my daughter in beautiful clothes. Today, I have nothing to put on her," says Yassin, one of thousands of Palestinians displaced from Gaza City.
"I never thought that one day I wouldn't be able to dress my children," says the 38-year-old, now living in Al-Mawasi, a coastal area designated as a humanitarian zone by Israeli forces.
"But the few clothes I found before evacuating to the south were either the wrong size or not suitable for the season," she adds, as Gaza bakes in summertime temperatures of 30-plus degrees Celsius every day.
Finding clothing - any clothing - has become increasingly difficult for the 2.4 million people living in the territory besieged by Israel.
Gaza once had a thriving textiles industry but since the war began on October 7 with Palestinian militant group Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel, it has received just a trickle of goods.
Faten Juda also struggles to dress her 15-month-old son, Adam, who is squeezed into ill-fitting pyjamas, his bare arms and legs sticking out from the tight fabric.
"He's growing every day and his clothes don't fit him anymore, but I can't find any others," the 30-year-old tells AFP.
For months, Safaa Yassin has dressed her child in the same white bodysuit, an all-too-familiar tale in the Gaza Strip, which has been devastated by 10 months of war.
"When I was pregnant, I dreamed of dressing my daughter in beautiful clothes. Today, I have nothing to put on her," says Yassin, one of thousands of Palestinians displaced from Gaza City.
"I never thought that one day I wouldn't be able to dress my children," says the 38-year-old, now living in Al-Mawasi, a coastal area designated as a humanitarian zone by Israeli forces.
"But the few clothes I found before evacuating to the south were either the wrong size or not suitable for the season," she adds, as Gaza bakes in summertime temperatures of 30-plus degrees Celsius every day.
Finding clothing - any clothing - has become increasingly difficult for the 2.4 million people living in the territory besieged by Israel.
Gaza once had a thriving textiles industry but since the war began on October 7 with Palestinian militant group Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel, it has received just a trickle of goods.
Faten Juda also struggles to dress her 15-month-old son, Adam, who is squeezed into ill-fitting pyjamas, his bare arms and legs sticking out from the tight fabric.
"He's growing every day and his clothes don't fit him anymore, but I can't find any others," the 30-year-old tells AFP.
Displaced Palestinian Nazek Abu Shmala washes clothes inside a flat in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip where she's temporarily sheltering with her family. Photo: AFP
Same headscarf
Children are not the only ones suffering from the lack of clothing in the Gaza Strip, which counted 900 textile factories in the industry's heyday in the early 1990s.
The sector employed 35,000 people and sent four million items to Israel every month. But those numbers have plummeted since 2007, when Hamas took power and Israel blockaded Gaza.
In recent years, Gaza's workshops had dwindled to about 100, employing about 4,000 people and shipping about 30,000-40,000 items a month to Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
By January, three months into the war, the World Bank estimated that 79 per cent of Gaza's private sector establishments had been partially or totally destroyed.
Even the factories that are still standing have ground to a halt, after months without electricity in Gaza. Any fuel that arrives for generators is mainly used for hospitals and United Nations facilities such as warehouses and aid-supply points.
In these conditions, finding new clothes is a rare event.
"Some women have been wearing the same headscarf for the past 10 months," Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, the UN agency in charge of Palestinian refugees, posted on X.
Wearing the same clothes all the time is not just unpleasant, it is a health hazard. With limited water to wash them, disease-spreading lice abound.
Ahmed al-Masri, 29, left his home in the north of Gaza at the start of the war.
Today in Khan Yunis, in the south, he says he does not have any spare shoes or clothes.
"My shoes are extremely damaged. I've had them repaired at least 30 times, each time paying 10 times more than before the war," he says, his gaunt face burnt by the sun.
Same headscarf
Children are not the only ones suffering from the lack of clothing in the Gaza Strip, which counted 900 textile factories in the industry's heyday in the early 1990s.
The sector employed 35,000 people and sent four million items to Israel every month. But those numbers have plummeted since 2007, when Hamas took power and Israel blockaded Gaza.
In recent years, Gaza's workshops had dwindled to about 100, employing about 4,000 people and shipping about 30,000-40,000 items a month to Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
By January, three months into the war, the World Bank estimated that 79 per cent of Gaza's private sector establishments had been partially or totally destroyed.
Even the factories that are still standing have ground to a halt, after months without electricity in Gaza. Any fuel that arrives for generators is mainly used for hospitals and United Nations facilities such as warehouses and aid-supply points.
In these conditions, finding new clothes is a rare event.
"Some women have been wearing the same headscarf for the past 10 months," Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, the UN agency in charge of Palestinian refugees, posted on X.
Wearing the same clothes all the time is not just unpleasant, it is a health hazard. With limited water to wash them, disease-spreading lice abound.
Ahmed al-Masri, 29, left his home in the north of Gaza at the start of the war.
Today in Khan Yunis, in the south, he says he does not have any spare shoes or clothes.
"My shoes are extremely damaged. I've had them repaired at least 30 times, each time paying 10 times more than before the war," he says, his gaunt face burnt by the sun.
Rami weighs the clothes for a customer at a laundromat he opened to help displaced Palestinian launder their clothes for a nominal fee in the Jabalia camp for Palestinian refugees. Photo: AFP
Walking barefoot
With two-thirds of Gaza's population living in poverty even before the war, many people were forced to sell their clothes once the conflict broke out and tanked the economy further.
But "there are no more shoes or clothes to sell", says Omar Abu Hashem, 25, who was displaced from Rafah, on the Egyptian border, to Khan Yunis further north.
Abu Hashem left his home in such a rush that he was unable to take anything with him. He has been wearing the same pair of shoes for five months, but only every other day.
"I share my pair of shoes with my brother-in-law," he explains.
On the days when he goes barefoot, he fears the worst, tiptoeing around the waste and rubble that carry diseases and contamination of all kinds.
Ahmed al-Masri, meanwhile, just wants some soap to wash his only T-shirt and pair of trousers.
"I have been wearing the same clothes for nine months. I have nothing else. I quickly wash my T-shirt and then I wait for it to dry," he says.
"And all this, without soap or detergent."
Walking barefoot
With two-thirds of Gaza's population living in poverty even before the war, many people were forced to sell their clothes once the conflict broke out and tanked the economy further.
But "there are no more shoes or clothes to sell", says Omar Abu Hashem, 25, who was displaced from Rafah, on the Egyptian border, to Khan Yunis further north.
Abu Hashem left his home in such a rush that he was unable to take anything with him. He has been wearing the same pair of shoes for five months, but only every other day.
"I share my pair of shoes with my brother-in-law," he explains.
On the days when he goes barefoot, he fears the worst, tiptoeing around the waste and rubble that carry diseases and contamination of all kinds.
Ahmed al-Masri, meanwhile, just wants some soap to wash his only T-shirt and pair of trousers.
"I have been wearing the same clothes for nine months. I have nothing else. I quickly wash my T-shirt and then I wait for it to dry," he says.
"And all this, without soap or detergent."
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