Blinken ceasefire comments are attempt to pressure group, says Hamas official

Blinken, meeting Israeli leaders to discuss how to get more aid into Gaza, has repeatedly urged Hamas to accept an offer from Israel that will release hostages and achieve a ceasefire, describing it as "extraordinarily generous".

Israel, West Bank, Palestinian attacks, Israeli military, violence escalation, Palestinian militants, armed clashes, security checkpoint, Palestinian fatalities, army raids, Jewish settlers, Palestinian villages, street attacks, Nur Shams, Tulkarm, military statement, Hamas

Violence in the West Bank, already on the rise before the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, has escalated since then with frequent army raids on militant groups (AP Photo)

Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said on Wednesday that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is blaming the delay of a Gaza ceasefire agreement on the Palestinian group unfairly.

Blinken, meeting Israeli leaders to discuss how to get more aid into Gaza, has repeatedly urged Hamas to accept an offer from Israel that will release hostages and achieve a ceasefire, describing it as “extraordinarily generous”.

“Blinken’s comments contradict reality. It is not strange for Blinken, who is known as the foreign minister of Israel, not America, to make such a statement,” Abu Zuhri told Reuters.

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“Even the Israeli negotiating team admitted Netanyahu was the one who was hindering reaching an agreement,” he added.

Abu Zuhri said that the group was still studying the recent ceasefire offer. Hamas is seeking a permanent ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, while Netanyahu says Israel needs to destroy the remaining Hamas formations in Rafah in southern Gaza for its own security, with or without a deal with Hamas.

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