Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri declared on Wednesday (27) that the group “appreciates” the right of Hezbollah and the Lebanese government to reach an agreement that protects their people, and expects the same to end the war in Gaza.
A ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese group Hezbollah came into force at 4am (local time) this Wednesday, after both sides accepted a truce brokered by the United States and France, a rare victory for diplomacy in a region traumatized by two wars for more than a year.
“Hamas appreciates the right of Lebanon and Hezbollah to reach an agreement that protects the people of Lebanon and we hope that this will pave the way for us to reach a proposal that will end the genocidal war against our people in Gaza,” Abu Zuhri told Reuters.
Without a similar agreement in the Gaza Strip, where Hamas is fighting Israeli forces, many residents said they felt abandoned.
Months of attempts to negotiate a ceasefire have yielded little progress and efforts are on hold.
While the Qatari mediator says he has communicated to the two warring parties that he would suspend his efforts until the sides were prepared to make concessions.
Abu Zuhri blamed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for failing to declare a truce that would end the Gaza war.
“Hamas has demonstrated high flexibility in reaching an agreement, remains committed to this position and is interested in a proposal that would end the conflict in the Palestinian territory,” the official said.
For Zuhri, the problem is Netanyahu, who, according to him, “has always escaped reaching an agreement”. The official also says that the Israeli leader accuses Hamas of “frustrating efforts for a truce.”
Hamas wants a resolution that will end the fighting in Gaza and see the release of Israeli and foreign hostages, as well as Palestinians held by Israel, while Netanyahu claims the war can only end after Hamas is eradicated.
In the West Bank occupied by Israeli forces, senior Palestinian Authority official Hussein Al-Sheikh welcomed the agreement in Lebanon.
“We welcome the decision to ceasefire in Lebanon and call on the international community to pressure Israel to stop its criminal war in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We also want an end to all escalations against the Palestinian people,” Sheikh, a confidant of President Mahmoud Abbas, posted on X.
US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday (26) that his administration was pushing for a ceasefire in Gaza.
This content was originally published in Hamas says “appreciates” ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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