Middle East News

Hamas Rejects Ceasefire Call From West Bank

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Hamas rejected another call for a ceasefire to stop the bloodshed Gaza, this time from fellow Palestinians in the West Bank.

According to a report by the official Palestinian news agency WAFA, Palestinian leadership in the West Bank had offered Israel a 24-hour truce,  that could be extended to 72 hours. Hamas and Islamic Jihad, another militant group in Gaza, supposedly supported this plan, CNN reported.

However, Hamas denied that such a move would take place and said the report was “not related to the resistance,” which “speaks for itself.”

“When we get guarantees from the Zionists for an international mediation regarding a humanitarian pause, then we can consider it,” Sami Abu Zhuri, Hamas spokesman, said on Hamas TV.

Israel has not yet commented on Hamas’ statement.

A truce between Israel and the Palestinians seems to be unlikely anytime in the next few days amid growing international calls to halt the fighting which has claimed the lives of more than 1,000 Palestinians and 30 Israelis in the first three weeks of hostilities.

“A night of intensified violence has exacerbated Gaza’s human displacement crisis,” Chris Gunness, a spokesman for the U.N. agency in Gaza, said on Twitter. More than 180,000 Palestinians have sought refuge in 82 U.N. shelters.

The conflict escalated dramatically early Tuesday as Israel launched one of its most intense attacks ever on Gaza, destroying  the homes of Hamas’ top-ranking leaders, offices, radio stations, as well as Gaza’s sole power plant, The New York Times reported.

“Today there is no electricity in Gaza,” said Jamal Dardasawi of Gaza’s electricity distribution company. He noted that the power being supplied by Egypt is not even enough for the southern city of Rafah. “The shelling of the station is a violation of all red lines.”

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