A Hamas official involved in the indirect negotiations with Israel taking place in Doha, Qatar, said on Sunday that the talks have hit a snag.
In a conversation with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper, the official said that "the resistance (Hamas) adhered to its stance opposing retreat from the core principles it had set in the past".
"The Arab and international silence regarding the violations (of human rights) and massacres being committed in the areas of north and central Gaza and the (Al-Shifa) hospital complex, prompted the occupying government to reduce the level of proposals it laid on the negotiation table," the Hamas official said.
He claimed, "When the heads of the Israeli negotiation delegation, Mossad chief David Barnea and Nitzan Alon, returned to Doha, they presented proposals that included retreating from concepts which they had previously promoted and which the resistance (Hamas) rejected".
"The position of the resistance (Hamas) is stable, and it will never agree to accept the framework that Tel Aviv promotes as part of a surrender agreement," said the senior Hamas official.
He also added regarding this matter, "The Israeli negotiation delegation raised, during the round of talks in Doha, a condition within the first proposed phase of the ceasefire which is expected to last six weeks, and that is - the return of the bodies of Officer Hadar Goldin and Soldier Oron Shaul."
This condition, added the senior Hamas official, refers to "a situation where Hamas would insist on releasing prisoners whom Israel had recaptured after they were released in the Shalit deal."