Mahmoud Mardawi, a senior Hamas official based outside of Gaza, complained in an interview aired overnight on Al Jazeera that Israel is pressuring Doha. According to him, "Netanyahu is directly threatening Qatar to force it to pressure Hamas because he has failed in his siege [on Gaza]."
Amid ongoing negotiations over a hostage deal and Israel's declared intention to expand its military operation in Gaza, the senior figure from the terrorist organization said, "We reject all evasions and partial agreements that do not bring this campaign to an end. We want a solution that will stop the killing. The partial paths and fragmented deals, which only lead back to war and to the application of dishonest pressure tactics, are paths we will not return to."
He added, "This behavior distances us from reaching a deal rather than bringing us closer, because we will not give Netanyahu an opportunity to evade responsibility and lie. He is trying to apply pressure through many channels to force us to concede. We will not back down from our position, and Netanyahu will be forced to agree to a comprehensive deal, the framework for which we have already presented to the mediators."
Mardawi also responded to the handover of a Hamas operative in Lebanon who had been involved in rocket fire against Israel: "We are in a confrontation with the Zionist enemy. This confrontation will not end as long as Palestine is under occupation and the holy sites remain under threat of Judaization. We will not stop. We will not stop. We will continue our confrontation with this occupation. The resistance will persist in every location."
By making these statements, Hamas once again acknowledged its intention to continue terrorist activity even if a temporary ceasefire is reached in the Gaza Strip.
