Hamas rejected Israeli proposal to separate Gaza from West Bank for truce

The Deputy Head of the Hamas political bureau, Dr Moussa Abu Marzouk, said yesterday that the movement “rejected” an Israeli proposal which would effectively separate the Gaza Strip from the West Bank in return for a five-year truce. The terms of the proposal were passed on through Palestinian businessmen and independent figures; Israel would have allowed Gaza to develop its seaport as well as the airport, claims a report in Anadolu.

“Israel made the proposal with the aim of separating the enclave from the West Bank so it can swallow it with the settlements,” wrote Abu Marzouk on his Facebook page. He said that Hamas has informed the Palestinian leadership about the proposal.

“We are paying a steep price for our stance by the continued blockade and economic pressure over the Strip, but we reject any idea that would lead to the separation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank,” he added, “despite the fact that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his government are actively doing so with their policies.”

Abu Marzouk called on President Abbas to “review his policies towards the Palestinian reconciliation and unity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”

In a bizarre twist, a member of the PLO Executive Committee, Ahmed Majdalani, spoke to a local radio station on Wednesday and claimed that “there are contacts between Hamas and Israel to establish a separate political entity in the Gaza Strip.”

Israel’s Walla! news website said on Monday that it had obtained documents from Western diplomats revealing that Hamas offered a five year truce with Israel in return for lifting the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip. The claim was denied by the Islamic movement’s spokesman, Sami Abu Zuhri, in previous statements to Anadolu.

According to Abu Zuhri, “international parties”, which he did not name, submitted such a proposal, but that Hamas has not responded to it until now.

Last year, Israel and the Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip agreed to a long-term truce after Egyptian mediation, and to resume indirect talks within a month. The latter has still not happened.