Palestinian groups reject temporary truce with Israel

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas says all Palestinian factions have strongly rejected any temporary extension of ceasefire with the Israeli regime.

Senior Hamas officials say the resistance groups would not extend the ceasefire because Israel has not responded to any of the Palestinian demands during negotiations.

They say any such extension is aimed at stalling a long-term truce that would meet the demands of the Palestinian side.

However, the Palestinian negotiating team in the Egyptian capital Cairo says it is committed to reaching a long-term Gaza ceasefire deal.

“We are interested in reaching a ceasefire…. There should be no buffer zones or [areas] we cannot come near,” media outlets quoted senior Hamas leader, Moussa Abu Marzouk, as saying.

The Palestinian demands also include fishing rights up to 12 nautical miles off Gaza’s coast and the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Thousands of Palestinians are reportedly being held in Israeli prisons under administrative detention orders. Administrative detention is a sort of imprisonment without trial or charge that allows Israel to incarcerate Palestinians for up to six months. The detention order can be renewed for indefinite periods of time.

Meanwhile, Egypt, mediating indirect talks between Israelis and Palestinians, says progress has been made in negotiations, calling for the expired 72-hour truce to be extended.

On Friday, a 6-year-old girl was killed and several others were injured in fresh Israeli attacks on the besieged Palestinian coastal enclave. The Israeli regime’s 30 days of military attacks against the Gaza Strip, which began on July 8, have claimed the lives of nearly 1,900 Palestinians, including more than 400 children, and wounded over 9,500 others.