Hamas Says Israel ‘Must End’ War in Gaza
The exiled leader of the Palestinian group Hamas said on Monday Israel must take the first step if it wants a truce in the conflict in Gaza.
“Whoever started the war must end it,” Khaled Meshaal told a news conference in Cairo.
Meshaal also said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had requested a ceasefire – an assertion the Jewish state immediately denied.
Israel bombed dozens of targets in Gaza on Monday for a sixth day on Monday but mediator Egypt said a deal to end the fighting could be close.
Twelve Palestinian civilians and four fighters were killed in the air strikes, bringing the Gaza death toll since fighting began last Wednesday to 90, more than half of them non-combatants, Gaza officials said. Three Israeli civilians have been killed by Hamas rocket fire over the border.
Meshaal said a truce in Gaza was possible but Hamas would not yield to any Israeli conditions. Hamas did not want an escalation or to draw Israel into a land invasion but was ready to fight back if the conflcit escalated.
Israel had failed to achieve its objectives in Gaza, he said.
“The weapons of the resistance have caught the enemy off guard,” he said. “Netanyahu asked for calm and not us.”
A senior Israeli government official denied that Netanyahu had requested a truce.
The Hamas leader also called for solidarity in Arab and Palestinian ranks.
“The people of Gaza are not asking for an end of the war, they are asking for their rights, they are asking that Israel end its assassinations and its raids and lift the blockade of Gaza,” he said.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.