Interview with Hamas up and up

[paul_valaru]

link

Al Jazeera: Under what conditions will Hamas agree a ceasefire with Israel?

Abu Marzouq: We have three conditions for any peace initiative coming from any state.

First, the aggression of the Israelis should stop. All of the gates should be opened, including the gate of Rafah between the Gaza Strip and Egypt. Finally, Israel has to withdraw from the Gaza Strip.

We are not saying we will stop firing rockets from the Gaza Strip to Israel - we are only talking about stopping the aggression from the Israelis against the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.

When others talk about a ceasefire, they are saying all military operations should stop.

But we are sending a message [by firing rockets]: "We will not surrender. We have to fight the Israelis and we will win this battle."

We know we are going to lose a lot of people from our side, but we are going to win, inshallah.

yeah, this is gonna end in peace.

 

[Inkara1]

"I want you to withdraw all your troops and stop fighting, but I'm still going to lob rockets your way. Sound fair?"

 

[MrBishop]

Why, at the beginning of this conflict, did Hamas decide not to renew the six-month ceasefire?

We agreed to this ceasefire under Egyptian mediation with certain conditions.

All military operations were to be stopped by June 19.
All of the six gates between Israel and Gaza were to remain open.
In the first 10 days of the truce, 30 per cent of the goods coming from Israel to the Gaza Strip were to be allowed in and, after that 10-day period, all supplies were to be allowed to enter.

Also, there was to be a meeting between the Europeans, Egyptians, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas to discuss how to open the Rafah gate.

Finally, the ceasefire was supposed to be extended to the West Bank.

During those six months, the Israelis kept the border crossings closed most of the time.
Only 15 per cent of goods were allowed to enter the Gaza Strip from Israel.
They killed more than 40 people in the last month of the ceasefire, eight of which were in the last week.
On many occasions, the Egyptians told us that the Israelis were not respecting the agreement.
Their refusal to allow supplies to enter was a type of slow killing of the Palestinians.

The Palestinians eventually asked: "What is the use of this ceasefire for us?"
For that reason, we didn't renew that agreement.

 

[paul_valaru]

Why, at the beginning of this conflict, did Hamas decide not to renew the six-month ceasefire?

We agreed to this ceasefire under Egyptian mediation with certain conditions.

All military operations were to be stopped by June 19.
All of the six gates between Israel and Gaza were to remain open.
In the first 10 days of the truce, 30 per cent of the goods coming from Israel to the Gaza Strip were to be allowed in and, after that 10-day period, all supplies were to be allowed to enter.

Also, there was to be a meeting between the Europeans, Egyptians, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas to discuss how to open the Rafah gate.

Finally, the ceasefire was supposed to be extended to the West Bank.

During those six months, the Israelis kept the border crossings closed most of the time.
Only 15 per cent of goods were allowed to enter the Gaza Strip from Israel.
They killed more than 40 people in the last month of the ceasefire, eight of which were in the last week.
On many occasions, the Egyptians told us that the Israelis were not respecting the agreement.
Their refusal to allow supplies to enter was a type of slow killing of the Palestinians.

The Palestinians eventually asked: "What is the use of this ceasefire for us?"
For that reason, we didn't renew that agreement.

coulda been becauseof the rockets

 

[2minkey]

coulda been becauseof the rockets

right. the rockets that came later.

 

[Cerise]

How long has the terrorist organization Hamas been shelling Israeli targets?

 

[Gonz]

Why, at the beginning of this conflict, did Hamas decide not to renew the six-month ceasefire?

They already had time to re-arm.

The rockets have been fired at Israel for 6 months. They've been far more forgiving than most nations would've been.