Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said on Wednesday the group "appreciates" Lebanon's right to reach an agreement that protects its people and it hopes for a deal to end the war in Gaza.
A ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah movement came into effect on Wednesday after both sides accepted an agreement brokered by the United States and France, but international efforts to halt the 13-month-old war between Hamas and Israel in the Palestinian territory of Gaza have stalled.
"Hamas appreciates the right of Lebanon and Hezbollah to reach an agreement that protects the people of Lebanon and we hope that this agreement will pave the way to reaching an agreement that ends the war of genocide against our people in Gaza," Abu Zuhri told Reuters.
Later on Wednesday, the group said in a statement it was open to efforts to secure a deal in Gaza, reiterating its outstanding conditions.
"We are committed to cooperating with any effort to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and we are interested in ending the aggression against our people," Hamas said.
It added that an agreement must end the war, pull Israeli forces out of Gaza, return displaced Gazans to their homes, and achieve a hostages-for-prisoners swap deal.
Without a similar deal in Gaza, many residents said they felt abandoned. In the latest violence, Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed 15 people on Wednesday, some of them in a school housing displaced people, medics there said. Months of attempts to negotiate a ceasefire have yielded scant progress and negotiations are now on hold, with mediator Qatar saying it has told the two warring parties it would suspend its efforts until the sides are prepared to make concessions.
Abu Zuhri blamed the failure to reach a ceasefire deal that would end the Gaza war on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly accused Hamas of foiling efforts.
"Hamas showed high flexibility to reach an agreement and it is still committed to that position and is interested in reaching an agreement that ends the war in Gaza," Abu Zuhri said.
"The problem was always with Netanyahu who has always escaped from reaching an agreement," he added.
Hamas wants an agreement that ends the war in Gaza and sees the release of Israeli and foreign hostages as well as Palestinians jailed by Israel, while Netanyahu has said the war can only end after Hamas is eradicated.
In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, senior Palestinian Authority Hussein Al-Sheikh welcomed the agreement in Lebanon.
"We welcome the decision to ceasefire in Lebanon, and we call on the international community to pressure Israel to stop its criminal war in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and to stop all its escalatory measures against the Palestinian people," Sheikh, a confidant of President Mahmoud Abbas, posted on X.
U.S. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday his administration was pushing for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Bitcoin hit a new all-time high on Monday morning, surpassing the $123,000 mark and gaining over 4% during the day....
A 6.2-magnitude earthquake has struck off the coast of Panama, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS)...
New York Governor Kathy Hochul has urged the White House to take immediate steps to address the growing threat of drone attacks on the United States, ...
Accidental poisonings among young children in the U.S. are rising sharply due to nicotine pouches and vaping, with a study warning of serious health r...
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that Washington has successfully contributed to resolving the long-standing conflict between Azerbaijan and ...
The U.S. is set to support Lebanon’s military readiness with a $100 million deal to sustain A-29 Super Tucano aircraft, enhancing the Lebanese Armed Forces’ ability to uphold the recent ceasefire in southern Lebanon.
The World Bank has said it's approved more than $1 billion in new funding to support rebuilding efforts and infrastructure development in Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.
The Lebanese government has firmly warned Hezbollah against participating in Iran’s retaliation against Israel, signaling a sharp rebuke of any unilateral military action by the group.
The fourth and final phase of Lebanon’s municipal elections began in the southern governorates, continuing the country’s first local voting process in nearly a decade amid ongoing security challenges.
A series of earthquakes have struck Guatemala on Tuesday afternoon, leading authorities to advise residents to evacuate from buildings as a precaution against possible aftershocks.
A deadly mass shooting early on Monday (7 July) in Philadelphia's Grays Ferry neighbourhood left three men dead and nine others wounded, including teenagers, as more than 100 shots were fired.
Australian researchers have created a groundbreaking “biological AI” platform that could revolutionise drug discovery by rapidly evolving molecules within mammalian cells.
Dozens of international and domestic flights were cancelled or delayed after Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki erupted on Monday, but Bali’s main airport remains operational.
French member of parliament Olivier Marleix was found dead at his home on Monday, with suicide being considered a possible cause.
US President Donald Trump warned on Monday that if no agreement is reached within 50 days to end the war in Ukraine, the US will impose 100% secondary tariffs on Russia.
On 13 July, a plane crash near London’s Southend Airport resulted in the deaths of four people. Essex Police confirmed that all the deceased were foreign nationals.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated on Monday that a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip alone is insufficient to resolve the conflict. He emphasised the necessity of a two-state solution where both Palestinians and Israelis can fully exercise their rights.
Bitcoin hit a new all-time high on Monday morning, surpassing the $123,000 mark and gaining over 4% during the day.
A 6.2-magnitude earthquake has struck off the coast of Panama, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS)
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment