Hamas rejects Gaza truce unless blockade lifted

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has rejected a ceasefire with Israel unless its demands, including the lifting of the Gaza siege, are met.

“Let’s agree first on the demands and on implementing them and then we can agree on the zero hour for a ceasefire… We will not accept any proposal that does not lift the blockade…We do not desire war and we do not want it to continue but we will not be broken by it, Hamas Political Bureau chief Khaled Meshaal said at a press conference in the Qatari capital Doha on Wednesday.

Meshaal also accused the United States of complicity in the crimes of Israelis against the Palestinians, saying Washington is adopting double standards with regards to the plight of the Palestinians.

He also praised the resistance of Gazan civilians and resistance fighters in the face of the Israeli aggression.

The Hamas leader further blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for taking the revenge of Tel Aviv’s military failure in Gaza on civilians.

Since July 8, Israeli warplanes have been hitting numerous sites in the Gaza Strip, demolishing houses and burying families in the rubble. Israeli tanks also began a ground offensive against the impoverished Palestinian land on July 17.

The Israeli raids have killed more than 700 Palestinians, including women and children, and injured over 4,200 others so far.

The United Nations Security Council has expressed serious concern over the growing number of casualties in the Palestinian coastal enclave.