A senior Hamas official said that there was “nothing to say” in the other talks on a new ceasefire agreement in Gaza and the release of hostages after Israel said that he would widen his offensive on the ground and occupy Gaza indefinitely.
Bassem Naim told the BBC that the Palestinian armed group would not engage with new proposals while Israel continued what he called his “Famine War”.
Israel says that its objective is the return of hostages still held by Hamas and its “dismantling and decisive defeat”.
Israeli officials said on Monday that the plans concerned the displacement of the majority of the population of 2.1 million Gaza, entering the whole territory and taking control of humanitarian aid after a blockade of two months.
They also declared that the offensive would only start after the visit of US President Donald Trump in the region next week, giving Hamas what they called an “opportunity window” to accept an agreement.
Great Britain, France and the UN have criticized the new plans of Israel.
The UN secretary general António Guterres expressed his alarm and warned that he “would inevitably lead to countless more killed civilians and to the additional destruction of Gaza”.
The United Nations agencies and their partners also condemned Israel’s proposal to provide aid through private companies in military centers, saying that it would be a violation of basic humanitarian principles and that they did not cooperate.
