Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri announced on Tuesday that the terrorist group is reviewing new proposals from mediators to resolve the Gaza conflict, emphasizing again that any agreement must include a full Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza, Reuters reported.
"The movement has confirmed it is open to any deal or ideas that ends the suffering of our people in Gaza and achieve a permanent ceasefire, and the occupation's withdrawal from all of Gaza Strip," Abu Zuhri stated in a televised address.
He added that any agreement should also lift the blockade on Gaza, allow unrestricted humanitarian aid, initiate Gaza’s reconstruction, and arrange for a swap of Israeli hostages in Gaza for terrorist prisoners in Israel.
Abu Zuhri’s remarks indicated no change in the group’s existing demands.
His comments come as talks resumed in Doha, Qatar, on a deal for a ceasefire and a release of hostages.
On Sunday, before the start of the talks, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi publicly proposed a two-day ceasefire deal in which four Israeli hostages would be released in exchange for terrorist prisoners held in Israel and in the ten days following, negotiations would be held regarding a more extensive deal.
On Monday, a source involved in the negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal being conducted in Doha told the Quds Press news agency that Hamas does not support a limited timeframe of several days in which the organization would return some of the hostages and afterwards the fighting would continue.
Hours later, sources in Hamas told the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that the terrorist organization is willing to consider Egypt’s proposal but also stressed again that Hamas’ conditions for a deal include the complete withdrawal of IDF troops from the Gaza Strip.
During previous rounds of negotiations, the United States was pushing an outline for a ceasefire and hostage release deal that Biden first laid out in May, but Hamas has continuously rejected that outline and every other proposal that has been presented to it.