2/9/2024–|Last update: 2/9/202401:58 AM (Makkah Time)
Khalil Al-Hayya, a member of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and the negotiation file official, revealed new details about the fate of the Israeli prisoners in Gaza and the progress of the negotiations to reach a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.
Al-Hayya said – during an interview with Tel Aviv Tribune – that Hamas insists on a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphi and Netzarim axes, as a condition for any agreement.
He added, “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said clearly that there is no exit from Netzarim and no exit from Philadelphia, and I say here clearly that without exit and complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, there is no agreement.”
He explained that Netanyahu wants the war to continue and does not want to reach a deal, “because the deal has a real price, and he does not want to pay this price.”
The Hamas leader criticized the new conditions set by Netanyahu, saying, “In a paper he presented to the mediators, they wanted to deport 50 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences after their release, but after July 2, the number was raised to 150.”
He also explained that among the new conditions that Netanyahu has put back in place is that no Palestinian life sentence will be released, even if they are sick or elderly, in violation of the previous Israeli paper.
“In each of the clauses, Netanyahu has put a new condition that obstructs the paper he himself had drawn up, including Philadelphia and Netzarim,” he added, noting that “unless the Palestinian prisoners are released, the war stops, and the Israeli occupation withdraws, specifically from Philadelphia, there will be no agreement,” describing the current obstacles to reaching an agreement as great.
Al-Hayya held Israel fully responsible for the killing of the six prisoners, adding, “The six prisoners and others could have been released to their families as part of a real exchange deal while they were alive, but the insistence of the occupation army and its extremist government is the reason why these people lost their lives along with dozens who were killed directly by the occupation by bombing them, along with those who sat with them, guarded them, and lived with them.”
Al-Hayya pointed out that some of the prisoners were killed “directly with live bullets,” accusing the Israeli government of not caring about the fate of the prisoners, and cited a statement by Netanyahu in which he said that “Philadelphi is more important than the prisoners,” considering this evidence of Israel’s lack of seriousness in concluding a swap deal.
He added that Netanyahu is showing off his heroism and trying to show false heroism, and that the occupation was a direct cause of killing these six people by bombing, just as many others were killed before them.
Al-Hayya highlighted the story of an Israeli prisoner who holds American citizenship, explaining that Hamas responded to a humanitarian request to provide a video showing the prisoner talking to his family.
He explained, “After this video, the Qassam Brigades – the military wing of Hamas – announced that they had lost contact with him and those guarding him, in a clear indication that he had been directly bombed by the Israeli occupation, and since that day nothing has been known about his life. Today he was found dead with others, and this is a clear indication that the occupation is targeting these prisoners.”
Regarding the negotiations, Al-Hayya stressed that Hamas had shown “great flexibility and made major concessions” in order to reach an exchange deal and stop the aggression.
He explained that “all the stages of the negotiations showed that Netanyahu is not interested in making a deal, and instead of sending his army to kill and destroy an entire area and retrieve two or three prisoners and kill hundreds of Palestinians in return, he could have retrieved them in a real exchange, and we did that last November.”
He added, “At that time, more than 115 to 125 Israelis and foreigners returned through negotiations, with Qatari desire, will, and mediation.”
Al-Hayya criticized the American role in the negotiations, accusing it of being responsible for disrupting the negotiations and not wanting to reach a deal.
He pointed to a series of Israeli maneuvers in the negotiation process, including rejecting proposals made by Egyptian mediators, as well as occupying the Rafah crossing after Hamas agreed to an Egyptian proposal.
Al-Hayya revealed details of an Israeli paper submitted on May 27, which was adopted by US President Joe Biden and the UN Security Council, and said, “We were expecting an opportunity for an agreement, but what did the occupation do? It began to evade.”
Al-Hayya confirmed that Hamas submitted inquiries to the mediators, and that the Americans and Israelis assured the mediators that all inquiries were answered. He said, “Among them were inquiries about the Philadelphi and Netzarim axes and the exit from the Rafah crossing.”
He pointed out that some Israeli occupation leaders welcomed it and said that Hamas opened a horizon for an agreement, and the Americans welcomed it as well, but he wondered, “What did Netanyahu do after July 2 before he went to America to address Congress? He set new conditions that contradicted the previous conditions.”
Al-Hayya criticized the American position, saying: “The Biden administration is moving in two directions: the first is that it wants to reach an agreement, but it is not pressuring the Israelis. Second, it is spreading an atmosphere of unreal optimism and positivity.”
Regarding the technical committees, the Hamas leader said, “We heard about the technical committees that are working now, but we did not participate in them. In the end, we did not hear about the results of these committees. They are looking into everything except for an agreement.”
Al-Hayya stressed that the first obstacle today is the withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor, saying: “This is a decisive condition. Without a withdrawal from Philadelphi, the Rafah crossing, and Netzarim, there is no agreement,” stressing that the Rafah crossing is Palestinian-Egyptian and must be managed by the Palestinians, and the occupation must withdraw from Philadelphi and the Rafah crossing.
Al-Hayya addressed what is happening in the northern West Bank, considering it clear evidence that this Nazi fascist Israeli government does not recognize the existence of the Palestinian people or the existence of Palestine, and that they are trying to change the demographics in the West Bank, storm the camps, and destroy the Palestinian infrastructure.
He added, “The aggression on the West Bank today has complicated the situation, but the Palestinians will not surrender. The resistance in Gaza and the West Bank continues, the people are steadfast and determined, and the occupation will not rejoice at the surrender of the Palestinians.”
Al-Hayya stressed that the Palestinian resistance continues in all areas, pointing to the joint coordination between the various Palestinian factions in confronting the occupation.