Hamas Terrorists - Photo by Marco Longari/AFP/Getty Images
WASHINGTON DC (WSAU) – An Egyptian-led peace proposal with Israel, which would have required the terrorist organization to concede political authority in the region in exchange for an end to the war, has been rejected by Hamas.
Two Egyptian security sources told the New York Post that the deal fell apart when the terrorist organization rejected a proposal for a Palestinian parliament to be formed and free elections to be held.
Rather, the terrorist group restated that the only proposal they are prepared to discuss is a prisoner swap, which would see the release of over 100 Israeli hostages in return for Hamas militants currently detained in Israeli jails, as reported by the New York Post.
A senior Hamas official later told Al Jazeera that the prisoner swap is only on the table if Israel agrees to pull out of the Gaza Strip: “No one accepts negotiating under fire—not Hamas, not anyone else.”
“Who will lead the Palestinians is an internal Palestinian issue,” the official continued.
In response, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff Herzi Halevi said on Tuesday morning that Israeli forces are “close to dismantling Hamas battalions in the northern Gaza Strip” and that the IDF is committed to eliminating the heads of Hamas.
“We eliminated many terrorists and commanders; some of them surrendered to our forces, and we took hundreds of prisoners. We destroyed many underground infrastructures and weapons,” he continued.
Both Halevi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed that there is still a way to go before the war ends, saying that it could take “many months” and that there are “no magic solutions.”
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