Hamas has rejected participating in the indirect talks for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, scheduled to resume in Doha on Thursday.
The Palestinian armed group is adamant about having a clear roadmap for implementing the agreement and refuses to engage in negotiations solely for the sake of negotiations, claiming it provides cover for Israel to continue its war.
They argue that the proposed deal outlined by US President Joe Biden at the end of May should be the basis for the roadmap, accusing Israel of imposing new conditions.
However, Israel’s prime minister has denied adding new conditions, stating that it is Hamas who has been demanding changes.
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Despite Hamas’s refusal to participate, US, Egyptian, and Qatari mediators are still planning to hold the talks, hoping to use them to develop a plan that resolves the remaining issues.
Last month, the talks faced setbacks and were suspended following the assassination of Hamas’s political leader and chief negotiator, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran.
The US aims to finalize a deal in order to deter Iran from retaliating against Israel for the assassination and to prevent a potential regional conflict.
Ahead of the talks, the US has increased its diplomatic efforts. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani emphasized in a phone call that no party in the region should take actions that undermine the efforts to reach a deal.
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The Israeli military initiated a campaign in Gaza to destroy Hamas following an unprecedented attack on southern Israel on 7th October, resulting in around 1,200 deaths and 251 others being taken hostage. Since then, more than 39,960 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
On Wednesday, a senior Hamas official confirmed that its representatives would not attend the meeting, despite many of them being based in the Qatari capital.
“We want a roadmap to implement what we have already agreed based on President Biden’s ceasefire plan and the Security Council resolution, which guarantees Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, specifically from the Philadelphi corridor [running along the border with Egypt], and allows the return of displaced persons to northern Gaza without restrictions, and allows the flow of humanitarian aid,” he told the BBC.
“It is Israel which added new conditions and reneged on its previous agreement,” he added.
