Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said Hamas welcomed the United Nations General Assembly’s resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and applauded the efforts of Saudi Arabia and the ministerial committee assigned by the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit to end the Gaza conflict.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh has said that the Gaza-ruling Palestinian faction is ready to discuss with Israel any arrangement or initiative that could lead to a ceasefire in Gaza.
“We are open to discuss any arrangement or initiative that could end the (Israeli) aggression,” Haniyeh, head of the Hamas political bureau, said in a televised speech aired on Hamas-affiliated Al-Aqsa TV on Wednesday, adding that without Hamas, any arrangement regarding the future of Gaza would not succeed, Xinhua news agency reported.
Haniyeh said Hamas welcomed the United Nations General Assembly’s resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and applauded the efforts of Saudi Arabia and the ministerial committee assigned by the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit to end the Gaza conflict.
He confirmed Hamas’s rejection of any post-war political arrangements that exclude Hamas and other Palestinian factions, and urged for increased international pressure to halt Israeli attacks on Gaza.
The resolution presented by Egypt and Mauritania with scores of co-sponsors was adopted on Tuesday with 153 votes. It received only 10 votes against and there were 23 abstentions.
The resolution also demanded the release of all hostages and called on parties to comply with their international obligations, especially for protecting civilians and to ensure humanitarian access for relief to Gaza.
The resolution is only symbolic because, unlike the UN Security Council, the UNGA does not have enforcement powers.
The UN has warned of a breakdown in the humanitarian system in Gaza where a majority of its 2.2 million residents have been displaced from their homes and face hunger and disease.
Illustrating the change in attitudes towards Israel, the earlier resolution on October 27 received 121 votes and it has risen to 153 for the latest resolution on Tuesday, while votes against came down from 14 to 10, and abstentions 44 to 23.
Earlier, Israeli media reported several Hamas leaders’ departure from Qatar to undisclosed destinations, suggesting potential relocations to countries such as Lebanon, Iran, or Algeria.
No confirmation from Hamas has been obtained regarding these reports.
Israel’s conflict with Hamas since October 7 has resulted in extensive casualties. At least 18,608 Palestinians have been killed and 50,594 others wounded in the Israeli attacks on Gaza and about 1,200 people have died in the Hamas attacks on Israel.
Last week, Washington vetoed a Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire, the second time it has done so.
Russia vetoed a resolution and China joined it in vetoing another.
However, the Council passed one resolution calling for a humanitarian pause in the fighting after Russia, the US and Britain abstained.
On November 24, the warring parties agreed to a four-day humanitarian pause in the fighting to enable humanitarian relief supplies to go to Gaza and for hostages to be released. It was extended for three more days.
More than 18,400 people have been killed by Israeli bombing in Gaza since October 7, when Hamas broke through Israel’s heavily guarded perimeter and massacred 1,200 people.
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