Al-Nounou says Israel derailed a near-final Gaza ceasefire deal, with Hamas ready to resume talks if aid is allowed in.

Taher al-Nounou, a senior official in the Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas, revealed that the most recent round of negotiations with Israel, held at the end of last month, had nearly resulted in a final agreement to halt the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip.

Speaking exclusively to Al-Jazeera, al-Nounou—who serves as media advisor to the head of Hamas’s political bureau—said that the talks were derailed by a decision from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes committed in Gaza. 

Al-Nounou also pointed to the role of US Middle East envoy Steven Witkoff in backing the Israeli position following the withdrawal of both Israeli and American delegations from the negotiations.

According to al-Nounou, Hamas approached all initiatives with responsibility and flexibility, motivated by concern for the Palestinian people, their well-being, and the lives of their children.

He accused Netanyahu of misleading the Israeli public—claiming the return of Israeli captives is a priority while simultaneously advancing plans to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, rejecting renewed negotiations, and creating further obstacles to reaching a deal.

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Al-Nounou’s remarks came as Israel’s Channel 12 reported that a ceasefire agreement was far closer to being finalized than official Israeli statements had suggested. 

The channel, citing mediating countries and Israeli officials, said Hamas did not present any unreasonable demands and that the remaining gaps were not sufficient to justify abandoning the talks. Instead, the negotiations were suspended due to a unilateral Israeli decision.

Al-Nounou affirmed that Hamas remains ready to return to the negotiating table immediately—provided that sufficient humanitarian aid and food supplies are allowed into Gaza to end what he described as a deliberate starvation campaign by the Israeli occupation.

Humanitarian Efforts

Al-Nounou added that the Hamas leadership is in constant communication with Qatari and Egyptian mediators to ensure the delivery of adequate and dignified humanitarian aid to Gaza. He commended the ongoing efforts of both countries to maximize the flow of aid to Palestinian civilians in the Strip.

He further stated that Hamas is working on multiple regional and international fronts to secure the delivery of aid and bring an end to what he described as a policy of starvation and genocide against the Palestinian people. 

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These efforts, he said, are grounded in Hamas’s longstanding relationships with Arab and Islamic nations, especially Qatar and Egypt.

Responding to allegations that Hamas’s decisions are dictated by external powers, al-Nounou stressed that the movement’s political decisions are entirely independent and based solely on the interests of the Palestinian people.

He dismissed as baseless any claims of Iranian or other foreign interference, saying that while Hamas maintains positive relations with Iran and numerous Arab and Muslim nations, these ties do not influence the movement’s internal decision-making.

(PC, AJA)