A Hamas official on Wednesday night appeared to reject what U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken described as an “extraordinarily generous” ceasefire agreement.
Osama Hamdan, a Lebanese-based spokesperson for the terrorist organization, told the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar TV that his group’s “position on the current negotiating paper is negative.”
Hamdan’s comments were later clarified by the Hamas press office, saying that they are still open to negotiations if the current proposal undergoes certain changes.
There was no comment as to what specific issues the terror group wanted to address, but past statements by their leaders have indicated that they are focused on ensuring a complete cessation of fighting.
The latest measure would have involved a 40-day suspension of hostilities and the release of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for what British Foreign Secretary David Cameron described as “the release of potentially thousands of Palestinian prisoners.”
In addition to the American, Qatari, and Egyptian brokered agreement, Israel was reported to have been open to negotiating a “period of sustained calm” beyond the 40-day truce.
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