The recent relative calm on Israel's southern border is a result of progress in talks between Hamas and Israel, senior Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip said Tuesday.
The officials also noted that the novel coronavirus outbreak, as well as the political processes that have followed the March 2 Knesset election, are also factors.
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The Hamas officials confirmed that a visit to Cairo by a delegation made up of representatives of various Palestinian factions, which came on the heels of the most recent spike in violence between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, also played a part in calming the situation and allowing negotiations for a long-term ceasefire to proceed.
Hamas and the other terrorist factions in Gaza are also worried that in the case of any rocket attacks launched from the Gaza Strip against southern Israel, arson balloons, or violent clashes on the border, Israel would take advantage of the world's focus on the COVID-19 outbreak to carry out massive airstrikes in Gaza, and possibly assassinate terrorist leaders.
Other officials in Hamas are denying that the quiet on the southern front stems from any desire by Hamas to "avoid ruining" a possible change of government in Israel.
A Hamas figure who spoke to Israel Hayom said: "Any political change in Israel would directly affect us. A new government in Israel would freeze steps such as the transfer of Qatari funds [to Gaza], as well as attempts to reach a long-term ceasefire. We have no interest in this. As far as we are concerned, a new government in Israel would push us back.
"The bottom line is, [Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu and [Blue and White leader] Benny Gantz are the same thing for us. We have no ties to the representatives of the Joint Arab List, and are certainly not coordinating with them. As of now, we have no interest in creating disruptions and escalating the situation," he said.
In related news, a senior official in the Palestinian Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip has confirmed that Israel has sent coronavirus testing kits to Gaza via third-party mediators, along with medical equipment, in response to an appeal put forth by Gazan medical personnel.
The Health Ministry official said that "handling the coronavirus outbreak takes precedence over any political consideration, and without help from Israel, Gaza would be in a very difficult situation in the case of an outbreak.
"We have no help from outside, certainly not from Ramallah or Egypt," the official said.
