Hamas says Netanyahu trying to ‘thwart’ Gaza truce

PALESTINE Territories: Hamas on Thursday accused Benjamin Netanyahu of trying to “thwart” a Gaza truce deal, after the Israeli premier said the Palestinian militant group has “rejected everything” in negotiations.

The blame trading comes as Netanyahu faces pressure to seal a deal that would free remaining hostages, after Israeli authorities announced on Sunday the deaths of six whose bodies were recovered from a Gaza tunnel.

Netanyahu maintains that Israel must retain control over the Philadelphi Corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border to prevent weapons smuggling to Hamas.

Hamas is demanding complete Israeli withdrawal from the area and on Thursday said Netanyahu’s insistence on the border zone “aims to thwart reaching an agreement.”

The Palestinian group says a new deal is unnecessary because they agreed months ago to a truce outlined by US President Joe Biden.

“We do not need new proposals,” the group said on Telegram.

“We warn against falling into the trap of Netanyahu and his tricks, who uses negotiations to prolong the aggression against our people,” the Hamas statement added.

US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that Washington thinks “there are ways to address” the impasse.

‘Not in coffins’

At Israeli protests in several cities this week, Netanyahu’s critics have blamed him for hostages’ deaths, saying he has refused to make necessary concessions for striking a ceasefire deal.

“We are just waiting for them to come back to us, to come back alive and not in coffins,” said Anet Kidron, whose community of Kibbutz Beeri was attacked on October 7.

Key mediator Qatar said on Tuesday that Israel’s approach was “based on an attempt to falsify facts and mislead world public opinion by repeating lies”.

Such moves “will ultimately lead to the demise of peace efforts,” Qatar’s foreign ministry said.

Of 251 hostages seized by Palestinian militants during the attack, 97 remain in Gaza including 33 the Israeli military says are dead. Scores were released during a one-week truce in November.

Israel’s offensive in Gaza has so far killed at least 40,861 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.

Most of the dead are women and children, according to the UN rights office.

Widespread Israeli bombardment overnight into Thursday included a strike which killed four people sheltering in tents near Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, a medical source told AFP.

In a separate stike in the southern Al-Mawasi area, a missile killed one and wounded several others, Palestinian Red Crescent Society medics said.

‘Blowing everything up’

The Israeli military said Thursday its aircraft “conducted three targeted strikes on armed terrorists” in the Tubas area, which includes Faraa refugee camp.

A strike on a car killed five men aged 21 to 30 and wounded two others, the territory’s health ministry said.

Eyewitnesses told AFP they saw a large number of Israeli troops storming Faraa camp, where explosions were heard.

The Red Crescent said the Israeli military handed over the dead body of a 17-year-old in Faraa camp, after medics were prevented from reaching him when he was wounded.

Israel has killed at least 35 Palestinians across the northern West Bank since its assault there started on August 28, according to figures released by the health ministry, including children and militants.

One Israeli soldier was killed in Jenin, where the majority of the Palestinian fatalities have been.

“Panic spread as the army was blowing up everything around without taking into consideration that there were children,” Hanan Natour, a resident of Jenin refugee camp, told AFP on Wednesday.

Israeli troops have destroyed infrastructure in Jenin and elsewhere in the West Bank, with the United Nations reporting the military restricting hospital access and using “war-like tactics”.