Hamas official says second phase of Gaza deal means rejecting guardianship and disarmament

A Hamas official has said that the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement must include clear guarantees and detailed commitments, stressing that it cannot involve guardianship, disarmament or foreign interference in Palestinian affairs.

Osama Hamdan, a senior figure in Hamas, made the remarks in televised comments on Tuesday evening. He accused Israel of failing to abide by the ceasefire agreement and of repeatedly violating international accords it has signed.

Hamdan said Israel is unwilling to move to the second phase of the agreement because it would require a full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the continued presence of the resistance on the ground.

“Our definition of the second phase of the agreement is that we reject guardianship, we reject disarmament, and we reject any interference in our internal Palestinian affairs,” he said. “We do not need foreign forces to come and disarm us — weapons that the occupation has failed to take from us for two years.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Hamas said comments by Israeli Defence Minister Yisrael Katz about maintaining Israeli forces in Gaza and establishing settlements in the northern part of the Strip amounted to a clear violation of the ceasefire agreement.

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said Katz’s remarks exposed the Israeli government’s expansionist intentions and showed that Israel continues to plan the displacement of Gaza’s population.

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