A member of Hamas' political bureau has remarked that the U.S. is no longer capable of bringing about a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
Osama Hamdan, former Hamas representative in Lebanon, made this comment during an Aug. 13 interview with the Associated Press (AP). According to him, his group – formally the Islamic Resistance Movement – is losing faith that U.S. President Joe Biden can pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a ceasefire deal.
The official cited one instance where William Burns, director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, told Hamas through mediators that Israel would agree to a peace deal. This failed to materialize, with Tel Aviv launching an attack on the city of Rafah in southern Gaza.
"The Americans were unable to convince the Israelis," lamented Hamdan. "I think they did not pressure the Israelis."
Hamdan also remarked that Hamas does not see Israel engaging in good faith in the ceasefire negotiations, which happened on Aug. 14 to 15 in Qatar's capital Doha. The group would only participate in further talks if negotiators would discuss Israel's peace deal that Biden announced in May without any additions, he said.
"We have informed the mediators that … any meeting should be based on talking about implementation mechanisms and setting deadlines, rather than negotiating something new. Otherwise, Hamas finds no reason to participate," Hamdan told AP.
During the interview, the Hamas politburo member accused Tel Aviv of sending a non-voting delegation to the negotiations, changing delegations from one round to another (prompting talks to return to square one) and imposing new conditions. He also showed AP copies of several iterations of the ceasefire proposal alongside Hamas' written responses to them.
Based on the documents, Hamas attempted to add additional guarantors at several points – including Russia, Turkey and the United Nations. But Israel's responses always included only the existing mediators: the U.S., Egypt and Qatar.
Hamas: Netanyahu uses negotiations as cover to continue his aggression against our people
On the same day as Hamdan's interview, his colleague Ahmed Abdel Hadi – incumbent Hamas representative in Lebanon – told Sputnik News that the group won't be participating in the Aug. 14 to 15 negotiations.
He also accused Netanyahu of "deceiving and evading," and claimed the Israeli leader "wants to prolong the war and even expand it at the regional level." Hadi continued: "Thus, he uses negotiations as a cover to continue his aggression against our people and commit more massacres against them."
Israeli officials had no immediate comment on Hamdan's claims during his interview with AP.
Sputnik News reported, citing the New York Times, that Netanyahu has toughened his stance on negotiations. The Israeli government has put forward five new demands to the mediators – with the most disputable one about Tel Aviv retaining control over the border between Gaza and Egypt.
A week before the talks took place, Cairo, Doha and Washington called on Tel Aviv and Hamas to resume negotiations. Leaders of the three countries said they were ready to present a final proposal to reach a deal.
Vedant Patel, spokesman for the U.S. Department of State, remarked that the U.S. "does not think that Hamas is an honest broker." His boss, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed his planned trip to the region given the volatile situation there.
Washington has nevertheless expressed hope that both Israel and Hamas would return to the negotiating table. But the U.S. government's actions prove otherwise – with Washington approving a new $20 billion arms sale to Tel Aviv. The deal includes tank rounds, mortar shells, air-to-air missiles and F-15 fighter jets. (Related: Biden reaffirms "unwavering" support for Israel by promising a fresh set of military deployments.)
The Islamic Republic of Iran warned on the same day as Hamdan's AP interview that only a ceasefire in Gaza could prevent Tehran from retaliating against Israel. Iran's counter-attack followed the assassination of Hamas Political Bureau Chairman Ismail Haniyeh in late July, which Tel Aviv masterminded.
Watch this ABC News report about the U.S., Qatar and Egypt calling for renewed negotiations between Hamas and Israel.
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