Hamas denies claims about airport in Israel

A senior member of the Hamas Political Bureau denied on Sunday that his movement had proposed Palestinian access to an airport in Israel, Quds Press has reported. Mousa Abu Marzook also denied that the movement had been offered access to a Mediterranean port in Cyprus.

“Hamas proposed only an airport in Gaza,” Abu Marzook wrote on Twitter. He added that the resistance group has not asked for the salaries of Palestinian public sector employees to be paid through the Israeli occupation authorities.

He made his comments after the Deputy Leader of Fatah, Mahmoud Al-Aloul, claimed that Israel had offered a port in Cyprus, an airport in Israel and the salary payment system. The proposed airport was in Eilat, he said, operating under Israeli supervision and with Qatar as the only destination.

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Stressing that Hamas has no reference points other than the national Palestinian institutions, Abu Marzook denied that it was “mixing-up the truce [with Israel] and reconciliation [with Fatah].

On 16 August, Israeli sources revealed the six main points of a potential truce agreement between Hamas and Israel. According to the sources the agreement is to be implemented gradually. A report in Haaretz said that the six points are: a comprehensive ceasefire; the opening of the border crossings and an expanded fishing zone; allowing medical and humanitarian aid to enter the Gaza Strip; a prisoner swap; the rebuilding of Gaza; and starting talks about a port and airport.