Hamas says no prisoner exchange without ceasefire; heavy Israeli fire pounds Gaza
The political bureau of the Hamas Group has downright denied any scope of negotiations and hostage-prisoner exchange with Israel until there is a ceasefire in Gaza.
The bloody gunbattle resumed as the temporary ceasefire truce between Israel and Hamas came to a complicated end on Friday, with warring sides accusing each other of breaching the extended pact.
The seven-day pause in the war saw dozens of Israeli hostages exchanged for more than 200 Palestinian prisoners. Following the breakdown of the temporary ceasefire and the renewed fighting, Israeli forces resumed pounding the enclave.
Meanwhile, the United States’ calls for restraint on the part of Israel grew with US Vice President Kamala Harris’s remarks on the sidelines of the COP28 Summit. The US hinted that Tel Aviv should use more caution as it shifted its focus on military offensives in war-ravaged Gaza soon after the truce ended.
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Hamas’s political bureau head Saleh Al-Arouri, in an interview with Al Jazeera TV on Saturday, said, “There are no negotiations now (with Israel)” and there will be no more prisoner exchanges until there is a ceasefire in Gaza. According to Al-Arouri, the remaining hostages still being held captive by Hamas are soldiers and veterans. Speaking about them, he said, “There will be no negotiations regarding them until the end of the aggression.”
The terror group member said that adult male hostages “all of whom served in the army, with some still on the reserve list” were now being subjected to different standards by Hamas.
His statements contradicted claims of Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, who on Saturday, said that Hamas refuses to release 17 women and children held captive by the group. The Israeli Prime Minister’s office on Saturday said that 117 men remain captive with Hamas.
As Israeli forces targeted the Gaza enclave following the end of the temporary ceasefire, United States Vice President Kamala Harris said too many innocent Palestinians had been killed in Gaza and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin deemed it a “moral responsibility” for Israel to protect civilians.
Speaking in Dubai, Harris said Israel had a right to defend itself, but international humanitarian law must be respected and that “too many Palestinians have been killed”.
“Frankly, the scale of civilian suffering, and the images and videos coming from Gaza, are devastating,” Harris told reporters.
In another message directed at Israel, Harris said the United States will not permit the forced relocation of Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank, the besieging of Gaza or the redrawing of Gaza’s borders.
“The international community must dedicate significant resources to support short- and long-term recovery in Gaza, for example, rebuilding hospitals and housing, restoring electricity and clean water and ensuring that bakeries can reopen and be restocked,” news agency Reuters quoted Harris as saying.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in Tel Aviv on Saturday, said Israel was continuing to work in coordination with the US and international organisations to define “safe areas” for Gaza civilians.
“This is important because we have no desire to harm the population,” Netanyahu said. “We have a very strong desire to hurt Hamas.”
This came as the United States has been vocal that Israel must narrow the combat zone during any offensive in southern Gaza and ensure safe zones for non-combatants.
On allegations of the collapse of the Qatar-mediated truce between Israel and Gaza, Tel Aviv said it has recalled a team from Qatar, accusing the Palestinian terror group of reneging on a deal to free all the women and children it is still holding. French President Emmanuel Macron said he was heading to Qatar to work on a fresh truce.
Meanwhile, the southern part of Gaza, including Khan Younis and Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of people, who fled the north of the enclave and had sought refuge, was pounded on Saturday. Local news agency claimed sources as saying warplanes bombed residences in Nuseirat refugee camp, killing at least 13 people.
The Hamas-run Gaza ministry said that in addition to the death toll, at least 193 Palestinians had been killed since the week-long truce collapsed on Friday. It added that more than 15,000 Palestinians have been killed since the inception of the Israel and Hamas war, following the Hamas-led rampage on October 7.
Israel claimed 1,200 people were killed and more than 220 taken hostage by Hamas.
Meanwhile, seemingly rigid in his conviction to “wipe out Hamas”, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “A difficult war is yet before us, but in the end, we will be victorious.”