Hamas says it has not received a serious proposal from Israel to release hostages
(Baonghean.vn) - Husam Badran, a member of the Hamas Political Bureau, told Al Jazeera on December 22 that the Islamic movement has not received any serious proposals from Israel to release hostages held in the Gaza Strip.
“Israel has not made any serious or realistic proposals on the hostage issue,” Badran stressed. He also accused the Israeli government of trying to “mislead the families” of Israeli citizens held in Gaza. According to Badran, Hamas’ priority remains “to stop the aggression” in the enclave.
Meanwhile, on December 22, the Hamas movement considered the UN Security Council's vote demanding large-scale aid deliveries to the war-torn Gaza Strip as "insufficient".
Earlier in the day, the UN Security Council passed a resolution to increase humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, though it fell short of calling for a ceasefire after a week of delayed voting and tense negotiations to avoid a US veto, hours after Israel signaled it was expanding its ground offensive into the Palestinian territory.
The resolution "calls for urgent steps to immediately allow safe, unhindered and expanded humanitarian access, as well as create conditions for a sustainable cessation of hostilities".
Amid global outrage over the rising death toll in Gaza in 11 weeks of war between Israel and Hamas and the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave, the US abstained to allow the 15-member council to adopt a resolution drafted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The remaining members voted in favor of the resolution except Russia, which also abstained, supporting an initial draft calling for an “urgent and sustainable cessation of hostilities” to allow access to aid.
The US and Israel have opposed a ceasefire, believing it would only benefit Hamas. Washington instead advocates a pause in hostilities to protect civilians and free hostages held by Hamas. “We believe that the resolution begins to unlock life-saving aid, as the denial of aid has left more than half a million people in Gaza facing starvation,” UAE UN Ambassador Lana Nusseibeh told the council after the vote.
US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield described the resolution as "a ray of hope amid a sea of unimaginable suffering", noting that it was the first time the Security Council had mentioned ending hostilities.
“We know that much, much more needs to be done to resolve this humanitarian crisis and lay the foundations for lasting peace,” Russia proposed amending the draft to return to the original text calling for “an urgent and sustainable cessation of hostilities.” The amendment was vetoed by the United States.
The amendment received 10 votes in favor, while four members abstained. Speaking after the vote on the resolution, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia accused the US of "forcing into the text a license for Israel to kill Palestinian civilians in Gaza under the pretext of 'creating conditions for the cessation of hostilities'."
“This resolution is a step in the right direction, it must be implemented and must be accompanied by strong pressure for an immediate ceasefire,” said Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour. Israel’s deputy UN ambassador Jonathan Miller stressed that any increased UN aid monitoring would have to go through Israel’s security clearance process.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said Israel's military campaign in the Gaza Strip is "creating major obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid" inside the coastal enclave.
