Middle East
Members of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the Hamas military wing, attend a memorial for Mohamed Zouari in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah on January 31, 2017. AFP file photo
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Hamas will not surrender its weapons, a leadership member said on Saturday after the group agreed to some elements of a ceasefire proposal from US President Donald Trump to end two years of war with Israel.
"We started from a rock to build drones. Therefore, we will not surrender our weapons whatsoever," Taysir Suleiman told Rudaw. "Hamas' redline is Gaza's massacre and bombings must stop, and weapons of the Palestinian state must defend Gaza."
He noted that Hamas took up arms in self-defense: "In 1982, when the Palestinians laid down arms, Israel massacred hundreds. In the ensuing years, tens of thousands of Palestinians and Lebanese were killed by Israel.”
Trump on Monday unveiled a proposal to end the war between Israel and Hamas that includes the release of all Israeli hostages within 72 hours, the demilitarization of the Palestinian enclave, the exclusion of Hamas from any future political role in Gaza, and the establishment of an international transitional body supervising governance of Gaza.
In a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday, Trump thanked the Israeli premier for “agreeing to the plan” and said that if “Hamas rejects this agreement, Netanyahu will have our full support to do what needs to be done."
Hamas on Friday agreed to release the hostages and to hand over administration of Gaza to a “Palestinian body of independents,” but said other parts of the proposal require negotiation.
Suleiman laid out Hamas’ demands, which include a ceasefire.
"Palestine's sovereignty must be preserved," he added. "No foreigner must come over and make decisions regarding Palestine. Every decision must be made together with the Palestinians."
The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a surprise incursion into southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and taking approximately 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Of those, 47 hostages remain in Gaza, including 25 who the Israeli military believes are dead.
Israel responded to the attack with a large-scale military campaign in Gaza, killing more than 66,000 people, according to the enclave’s health ministry. A United Nations commission has concluded that Israel committed genocide in Gaza.
Palestinian factions have been given several days to issue a formal response to Trump’s plan.
Suleiman said they are currently engaged in talks with mediators Egypt and Qatar.
"The American president must tell Israel to give up on killing, starving kids, and bombing the hospitals. They must not direct their words at Hamas only," he said. "All sides, including Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey know that Hamas is committed to deals. Just today, due to Israel's bombings many Palestinian children inside hospitals were killed."
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