#khalil al-hayya

[vyorei]

[trendynewsnow]

Hamas Vows to Continue Resistance After Leader Yahya Sinwar's Death

Hamas Vows to Continue Fight After Leader’s Death A senior Hamas official declared on Friday that the killing of the group’s leader, Yahya Sinwar, would not deter their ongoing conflict with Israel. This assertion came as President Biden sought to broker a deal aimed at halting the violence in the Gaza Strip and securing the release of hostages still held there. In Hamas’s first official response…

[arrahmahcom]

Khalil Al-Hayya: Muhammad Al-Deif sedang Menertawakan Kebohongan Kalian

GAZA (Arrahmah.id) – Khalil Al-Hayya – Wakil Ketua Gerakan Perlawanan Islam (Hamas) di Jalur Gaza – membantah pemberitaan kalangan ‘Israel’ soal terbunuhnya komandan Brigade Syahid al-Qassam, Muhammad al-Deif dalam serangan yang terjadi pada Sabtu (13/7/2024), di kawasan Al-Mawasi, selatan Jalur Gaza, menegaskan bahwa Perdana Menteri ‘Israel’ Benjamin Netanyahu mengharapkan deklarasi kemenangan…

[sirlancenotalot]

masterlist of gofundme links!

hello, recently i’ve been getting asks with gofundme links and as i can’t pin one post specifically, i thought i’d make a masterlist of people that have come to me. i have tried to verify each and every account, most of these are vetted accounts. PLEASE REBLOG if you see this and i’ll try to keep it as updated as possible. i’ll also write how much has been donated at the time of this post. search for the tag 'free palestine' in my blog to see other posts related to this. donate if you can, at least share this so that it reaches people who can donate ❤️‍🩹

Gaza Support - a list of gfms

Vetted Gaza Fundraiser List

Suhair, a single mom along with her little children - (£58/£40,000)

Ahmed Abu Ghazala -  ($220,010/ $222,450) so close!! let's do it!!!

Maryam and her family - ($30,786/$50,000)

Eslam Gheelan - ($31,125/$50,000)

Musab Abedraboo - (€1,562/€7,000)

Malak Dader - (€1,813/€25,000)

Amal Alanqar - (€1,739/€50,000)

Mahmoud Ayyad - (€3,606/€100,000)

Ibrahim Abdel Hadi and his family including their five year old son who has a congenital condition that is worsening due to lack of healthcare - ($2,128 CAD/$65,000)

Karam Rafiq Al-Nabih -   (€10,775/€20,000)

Rajaa and family -   ($1,918 CAD/ $20,000)

Mahmoud Alkhaldi - ($1,882/$50,000)

Munna Tashmali -   (£4,671 / £30,000 )

Salahaldin Ahmad Khalil Hor and His Family - (€2,133/€40,000)

Walaa and her parents - ($11,131/$50,000)

Wafa and their family - (€2,723/€100,000)

Sahar Shehab & her family of 8 -  (€24,277/ €50,000)

Ashraf Alanqar -  (€9,353/€20,000)

Doaa Jadalhaq and her five year old son, Omar - (kr28,273 SEK/kr200,000)

Ibtisam Al-Habil and her family - ($7,180/$70,000)

Muhammad Shehab - (€1,600/€25,000)

Bilal Abed Rabou  - (€2,757/€80,000)

Mahmoud Khalaf and his family of eight - (€14,321/€30,000)

Mohammed Alanqer  - (€42,578/€58,000)

Ruba and her family which includes her elderly father whose health is in a critical condition -  (€27,326/€100,000)

Mohammed Al Sharif - (£4,510/£28,000)

Eman Zaqout - ($4,207 CAD/ $40,000)

Ahmed Qnoufa - (€1,318/€55,000)

Maram and family - ($5,056 USD/$50,000)

Ikhlas Abu Hujair and her family with four children - (€4,489/€30,000)

Dima Al-Safadi - (€3,498/€40,000)

Mohammed Razan - (€8,532/€40,000)

Ahmed Abu Hayya - (€4,630/€20,000)

Mohammed Ayyad - (€11,923/€35,000)

Mohammad Taysir - (€1,880/€50,000)

Ahmed Al-Najjar - (£951/£80,000)

Shymaa Taiser - ($7,745/$50,000)

Mohammed Atallah - (€6,428/€82,000)

Abdelrahman - (€11,928/€20,000)

Ghazi Younis - ($1575/$30,000)

Mohi - ($2378/$5000)

Ahmed Baalousha - (€17,564/€52,000)

Omar Muhammad Ayyad - (€12,708/€35,000)

Mahmoud Khalaf - (€16,453/€30,000)

Mahmoud Baalou - ($6,931/$50,000)

Haya and their family - (€61,692/€100,000)

Abdel Muti Al-Habil - (€4,975/€50,000)

Linda Khwaiter - ($2,532/$80,000)

Adham Ayyad - (kr6,941/kr750,000)

Fatima Alanqar - (€6,034/€20,000)

Safaa Al Khatib - (€22,396/€35,000)

Fadi A. Ayyad - ($32,307/$35,000)

Ola Ferwana - (€1,559/€35,000)

Dr. Husam Farhat - ($5,540/$29,500)

Abedalrahman Salem Alhabil - (€81,531/€120,000)

Abdul Karim - (£9,081/£15,000)

Ahmed and family - ($35/$25,000)

Alaa Al Khateeb - (£27,626/£56,000)

Majed and Family - ($1,025/$70,000)

The Shamalys family - ($24,305/$90,000)

Youssef, a 19 year old and family - ($4,162/$15,000)

Etaf Al-Qataa - (€814/€10,000)

Rawhy Ayman Al-Masry - (€814/ €20,000)

Rafat Al-Swaisi - (€138/€45,000)

Aya Yasser - ($154/$100,000)

Ahmed Halas - (€11,296/€80,000)

Doaa and her family - ($5,814/$40,000)

Amal and her family - (€796/€53,000)

Heba and family - (€654/€40,000)

Mahmoud Almadhoun - (€7,005/€50,000

Amal's Family - ($587/$30,000)

Ahmed Mohammed - (£950/£55,000)

Heba Al-Anqar - (€4,438/€60,000)

Hijazi Family - (€710/€100,000)

Dalia and family - (€6,486/€50,000)

Ibrahim Al Hayek - (€5,905/€10,000)

Amany Ayyad - (€170/€50,000)

Mohammed Alazaiza - ($7,117/$48,000)

Yasser Bassam - (£5/£50,000)

Dr. Mohammed Aldeeb - (€41,313/€55,000)

Samer Aburass - (kr142,502/kr450,000)

Osama Abdel Salam Al-Qarnawi - (€312/€37,000)

Hanan and family - ($1,666/$100,000)

Mohammed Nasr - (£230/£50,000)

Mahmoud Khalaf - (€31,442/€55,000)

Mohamed Mohamed - (£1,001/£50,000)

Rania family - ($1,580/$35,000)

Abdulkarim Al-madhoun - (€17,569/€20,000)

Hadeel Abu Jiab - (€6,862/€20,000)

Ahmed Alanqar - (€62,218/€75,000)

Nour and family - ($3,560/$25,000)

Shaima & Ibrahim Al-Sir - (€4,405/€50,000)

Ola - ($63,582/$85,000)

Roaa Omar Al-Khalidi - (€577/€20,000)

Muhammad Abu Lihiya ($4,425/$50,000)

Aya Almajdoub - (€4,551/€55,000)

Haya - (€96,840/€100,000)

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

Reuters’ Ethics and Standards editor told HonestReporting on Tuesday that the wire service “disputes” our “claim” that its journalists had “decorate[d] their office with terror symbols.”

This despite photo evidence we exposed last week showing scarves with terror groups insignias decorating what used to be Reuters office in Gaza in 2013:

The man in the photo is Reuters current Head of Visuals for Gaza, Suhaib Jadallah Salem. The photo still appears on his Facebook page.

Like the Nazi Swastika, the emblems on the scarves are of genocidal groups — Hamas, Islamic Jihad, al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades — that call for the killing of Jews/Israelis (like some of Suhaib’s colleagues in Reuters).

There are only two bad explanations to Reuters’ disturbing response: ” Either it doesn’t view these proscribed terror groups as such, or it is denying indisputable evidence.

The rest of Reuters Ethics and Standards editor Brian Moss’s official response did not address our exposure of its journalists in Gaza receiving awards from senior Hamas officials.

Instead, it said: “On the basis of a close review by the Reuters Ethics and Standards department, we dispute the distorted evidence and insinuations of bias in the HonestReporting September 5th article. We stand by our coverage of Gaza and our team, who operate within the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles…Further, we dispute any claim that our journalists received ‘de-facto bribes from terrorists.'”

But here are the facts, which HonestReporting stands behind:

Our review of Palestinian media revealed that since 2015, the proscribed terror group has hosted annual ceremonies to honor Gazan journalists who had won prestigious international awards, including photographers from Reuters.

This cozy relationship between Gaza’s terror groups and the journalists tasked with covering them objectively is ethically flawed. It exposes the disturbing entanglement between terrorists and the media, shaping a distorted global narrative about Gaza.

Honored by Terrorists

In 2017, Hamas held a commendation event for international award-winning journalists in Gaza, where it honored Reuters photographer Suhaib Jadallah Salem — the agency’s current head of visuals for Gaza (who was photographed in Reuters office in front of the terror groups’ scarves.)

One of the photos from the event shows Suhaib’s brother Mohammed Jadallah Salem, a Reuters photographer who recently won the Pulitzer prize and the World Press Photo award, receiving Suhaib’s commendation plaque on his behalf. Two senior Hamas officials are granting the plaque: Khalil al-Hayya and Mushir al-Masri:

Al-Hayya has publicly called for a fight against Israel as “the head of the serpent,” and al-Masri has vowed to “uproot The Zionists With Our Axes, Knives, Guns.”

Receiving commendation from such terrorists is a mark of Cain. It should get any journalist disciplined by any respectable media outlet.

Yet Reuters journalists — knowing perhaps that their bosses won’t find out or even care — had no qualms getting into bed with Hamas. Another photo from the event shows other Reuters journalists around a table not too far from al-Hayya: Reuters Senior Gaza correspondent Nidal al-Mughrabi is sitting near Suhaib’s brother Mohammed and photographer Ashraf Amra (who was also honored at the event and exposed by HonestReporting for endorsing infiltration into Israel on October 7). Beside them is Belal Jadallah, who headed the allegedly “independent” Gaza Press House:

Suhaib himself attended a separate Hamas commendation event for journalists later in 2017. This time, he was honored for performing the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca:

Suhaib received the commendation from al-Masri and Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum (who have often been interviewed by Reuters), along with the movement’s media officials.

It’s worth noting that four of the Jadallah brothers work for Reuters, in Gaza and Dubai. And the links of the Jadallah family to Hamas go back years. One of the brothers of Suhaib and Mohammed, Sallah, was among the terrorists who kidnapped and killed Israeli soldier Nahshon Waxman in 1994.

The mastermind behind that operation was Moahmmed Deif, who was recently eliminated by Israel. As Hamas’ military chief, Deif was also one of the masterminds behind the October 7 massacre in southern Israel.

If Suhaib and Mohammed were professional journalists, such background wouldn’t necessarily matter. But if they have been hosted and honored by Hamas, it’s alarming.

Unethical Nexus

Top news editors probably know it’s impossible to be a journalist in Gaza without links to Hamas, which controls the information flow. In other words, professional journalism in Gaza is impossible, and news outlets should admit it to their audience.

But being hosted by Hamas, receiving its commendations, and displaying terror groups’ insignias isn’t a case of journalists even trying to be professional. This is an agenda-driven, cooperative, symbiotic, reciprocal, and personal nexus that benefits each side.

A Hamas statement from one of the commendation events said it best:

The media office of Hamas organizes this annual event to honor creative journalists for the fourth year in a row, in appreciation of their efforts in serving the Palestinian cause.

Journalists who violate the agency’s code of ethics by receiving de-facto bribes (or at least benefits) from terrorists to “serve the Palestinian cause,” and decorate their office with terror symbols, are not deserving of international praise or the defense of the Reuters Ethics and Standards department.

[eretzyisrael]

by John Spencer

But the details of Sinwar's death also tell us a lot about the state of Hamas. Much like when U.S. forces discovered Saddam Hussein cowering in a hole, the myth about Sinwar has been busted. He was not found looking defiant and capable, surrounded by an elite bodyguard force in one of the luxury bunkers discovered in areas of Gaza like Khan Yunis. Sinwar was killed looking desperate, dirty, and disheveled, living in fear, running from tunnel to tunnel, rubbled house to rubbled house, with only a couple other men, in a district he had hidden in because the world told the IDF they could not go there.

He was not commanding a military force with any capability. He oversaw nothing.

He had the pocket litter of a bum: a pack of mentos, tissues, some money, and a fake passport with the occupation listed as employee of United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Hamas is clearly broken. It clearly is operating without leadership, on autopilot and functioning as separate, disconnected guerrilla gangs completely unable to do organized acts.

Yes, Hamas could nominally elect and announce new leaders to replace Ismail Haniyeh, the Qatar based Hamas political leader killed last month, with another terrorist, someone like Khalil al-Hayya, who currently leads the hostage negotiations outside of Gaza. They could ceremonially announce a leader to run shadow operations inside Gaza, perhaps Yayha's brother, Mohammed Sinwar. Fanatical member of Hamas may still believe they can survive and one day win the war against Israel.

But peace for Israel and Gaza only ultimately comes if Hamas if prevented from regaining political or military power in the Gaza Strip.

Still, this could be the beginning of the end, though there is still a lot that must happen. If Hamas refuses to let the remaining 101 hostages go, the war will continue. If Hamas still has the guns and coercive power to include primary control of humanitarian aid distribution in Gaza, the war will continue. If Hamas believes they can survive as a political or military power in Gaza the war will continue.

[daniel-nerd]

while everyone is talking about the bullet that scratched trump, israel is yet again committing some of its most disgusting crimes in weeks, if not months.

(the video showcasing the medical teams trying to rescue civilians and save lives, when another airstrike hit, directly where the ambulances gathered.)

we live in a world where after idf warplanes dropped hundreds of kilograms worth of tnt, on a self designated ‘humanitarian zone’ that they demanded civilians to evacuate to, many of the medical teams who rushed there to try and save as many human lives as possible, were rescued by civilians who went to them to either help or get medical treatment, because the so called israeli ‘defense’ force targeted specifically the ambulances in another bombing shortly after, specifically to prevent them from saving lives. killing over 100 civilians, injuring hundreds more. 8 confirmed us made jdam bombs dropped in total, with estimation at a minimum of half a ton(around 1 thousand pounds) worth of tnt.

and the excuse? israel claim mohammed deif(the head of hamas’ military wing) was hiding between these civilians, even through last known appearance of him was most likely around 2018, and the one before that was in the year 2000, also there are hundreds if not thousands of underground tunnels that israel know they can’t get into, and admit they have no idea where most of them are.

hamas in response STOPPED ALL HOSTAGES NEGOTIATIONS, khalil al-hayya, (deputy chief of hamas’s political bureau) stated “we affirm that the claims of the occupation and netanyahu are false. we say to netanyahu that mohammed deif is listening to you now and mocking your false and empty statements. the claim of targeting leaders here and there is a ridiculous justification for killing women and children, and every palestinian, whether in gaza, the west bank, or anywhere else. this is an attempt by the criminal army to market its crimes against our people” he also described the attack as an attempt by the idf “to restore its dignity” after its defeat in the face of “resistance”

netanyahu admits israel have no idea if deif is alive or not and promised to go after all hamas leaders, which the idf later retracted the statement, after hamas alleged deif to be alive and well.

cheif of lebanon’s hezbollah declared this massacre will not go unpunished “the zionist enemy commits a massacre in al-mawaski, khan younis, justifying it by claiming they aimed to target hamas leaders … we will emerge victorious from the battle of the al-aqsa flood, heads held high…”

meanwhile hamas is successfully targeting and assassinating israeli combatants all over gaza.

this confirms that netanyahu’s claims about “cracks and weaknesses within hamas forces” was nothing but empty lies

the vast majority of israelis stopped believing in the ridiculous claims and blatant lies of the israeli government and the idf, with protests against the war, for hostage deal of everyone for everyone, and for the overthrow of netanyahu’s regime, such numbers of protests and protestors haven’t been seen since the last elections, which marked the very controversial 5th election in 4 years in israel.

lastly, the us started its sanctions against more terrorist settlers, known terrorist who organized the attacks against humanitarian trucks trying to bring food to gaza, the same attacks that standing together’s humanitarian guards stopped by physically protecting the trucks throughout their entire trip, saving as much vandalized food, and loading the saved food onto the next humanitarian trucks.

on an unrelated note: i’ve tried a new formatting, i hope y’all like it. i’m (hopefully) back at reporting about the stuff you might won’t hear in the mainstream news, showcasing the war from the point of view of israeli citizens.

[adropofhumanity]

Israeli forces murderered at least 90 civilians and injured hundreds in a series of massive airstrikes on the Al-Mawasi region on the southern Gaza coast on 13 July.

Israel claimed to have been targeting top Qassam Brigades commander Mohammed Deif and his deputy Rafi' Salameh during this massacre.

Not only did Deputy Head of Hamas in Gaza Khalil al-Hayya deny that he was assassinated, but Israel itself retracted its statements that Deif had been injured, and hours later, in his extremely inflammatory press conference, Benjamin Netanyahu also announced there was absolutely no confirmation of the Qassam leader's assassination.

"We tell Netanyahu that Mohammed Deif is listening to you now and laughing at your empty statements," said Hayya, who described Netanuahu's conference in its entirety as "miserable."

Following the massacre, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stomped on mediators' efforts to reach an agreement and once again said that Israel will not end the war on Gaza until "we obtain all the goals of the war, and not one moment before." He also claimed that he has not deviated from the proposal backed by US President Joe Biden.

Following the massacre, AFP reported, citing an unnamed Hamas official, that Hamas had pulled out of ceasefire talks.

However, this was denied by Hamas politburo member Izzat al-Rishq on Sunday.

Hayya also clarified the previous evening that Hamas will not give Netanyahu what he wants by pulling out of talks, but that the ball remains in his court.

[jloisse]

🔴Le vice-président du Hamas à Gaza, Khalil Al-Hayya.

[vyorei]

[satellitebroadcast]

Hamas says its negotiation team, led by senior official Khalil al-Hayya, met Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egypt’s intelligence chief Abbas Kamel to discuss the latest developments in Gaza. A current ceasefire proposal remains on the table with Hamas saying it’s ready to hand over Israeli captives, but Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu rejecting the terms. Sultan Barakat, a professor at Qatar’s Hamid Bin Khalifa University, says “the Israelis have created further facts on the ground” when it comes to the truce deal that Hamas accepted in July after it was endorsed by the UN Security Council. Israel has created a “corridor that splits Gaza in two and it will never leave that”, Barakat told Al Jazeera, a fact Hamas cannot agree to in any agreement. “They [the Israelis] use the excuse of security, but they really use it to make the lives of Palestinians even more difficult,” he added.

[junawer]

Sinwar fought on the frontlines for 18 days before martyrdom: Source

Hamas' matyred leader Yahya Sinwar had been fighting the invading occupation forces in Gaza for 18 days before his martyrdom, a source within the movement revealed.

On Friday, Hamas announced that its Gaza leader and Political Bureau Chief Yahya Sinwar was martyred on the frontlines of his masterpiece, Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, against the Israeli enemy.

Sinwar, contrary to the Israeli claims that he was hiding in tunnels and using captives as human shields, was in a house with several other fighters, himself donning military attire, including a vest, grenades, ammunition, and an assault rifle.

According to the source, although Sinwar was advised to remain off the battlefield after being appointed the chief of Hamas' Political Bureau, the leader rejected the proposition and insisted on resisting, fighting, and dying on the frontlines.

"He did not want to stay out of the battlefield, he wanted to die in battle. He had been fighting against Israel in Rafah for 18 days and was engaging in a battle with four comrades on the day of his death, a battle that lasted about two hours," the source said.

Revealing some details of the confrontation, the source told Sputnik that Sinwar was alone in the building after his comrades sought to divert the occupation forces away from him. He chose to wrap his face with a Kouffiyeh to avoid artificial intelligence recognition when the Israeli forces sent a drone to film him.

With nothing but a stick in hand, sitting on a sofa, he attempted to throw it at the Israeli drone, which then backed away before the house he was in was bombarded once again, leading to his martyrdom.

Hamas lives on regardless of leadership

Hamas has already begun examining who its next leader could be after Sinwar's martyrdom. According to the source, three possibilities exist at the time being.

The first could be the election of Hamas' acting leader Khaled Meshaal or deputy head of political office Khalil al-Hayya.

The second could be the election of a special committee to take the lead until the war on the Gaza Strip ends.

Lastly, Hamas' third option could be the election of a leader who will remain unannounced.

Regardless, senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri affirmed that the only path for the Palestinian people and their Resistance remains unwavering: standing firm on their land, resisting occupation, and confronting aggression until they thwart all efforts of displacement and the eradication of their national cause, leading to full liberation, independence, and the right of return.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/sinwar-fought-on-the-frontlines-for-18-days-before-martyrdom

[mariacallous]

Qatar, the small emirate on the Persian Gulf, has long enjoyed unmatched influence over Hamas, the ruling power in Gaza. It is now threatening to withdraw its services as a mediator between Hamas and Israel unless Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ceases what Doha considers to be a smear campaign against it. The fate of the remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza could now hang in the balance of this new diplomatic dispute.

Last week, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said that the mediation process had been abused for “narrow political interests,” and that Qatar will make “the appropriate decision at the right time.” It was a message intended for Netanyahu, according to an Arab official who spoke to Foreign Policy.

Qatari officials reportedly believe that Netanyahu is deliberately delaying a possible release of hostages to prolong the war and stay in power. By threatening to walk away from the negotiations, they believe they can pressure Netanyahu into clarifying whether negotiating a hostage release is a priority for him at all. “We only negotiate when both sides want us to,” said a Qatari official who spoke to Foreign Policy on the condition of anonymity considering the sensitivity of the matter.

Netanyahu knows Qatar is necessary to the negotiations owing to the leverage that it gained over Hamas in the years prior to the current war. Qatar sent $1.3 billion in aid to Gaza between 2012 and 2021, at a time when Israel had otherwise largely cut off the territory, and it lent Hamas international credibility by giving its representatives airtime on Al Jazeera.

Qatar is well aware of its unique diplomatic position and is enjoying the limelight on the global stage. And yet there have been valid questions around Qatar’s intentions. There is strong suspicion in Israel and in parts of the U.S. government that it is biased in Hamas’s favor and pushing for its agenda. Doha, they say, could more effectively compel Hamas if it threatened those of its leaders who have taken residence in Qatar with expulsion, or with extradition to a country that lists Hamas as a terrorist organization.

Qatar started to host Hamas in 2012 after the group ran afoul of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and claims to have opened its doors at the behest of then-U.S. President Barack Obama. But Foreign Policy has learned from the aforementioned Arab official who is aware of the negotiations that despite bipartisan pressure from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, Qatar has not yet asked Hamas to relocate.

Last week, U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer accused Qatar of blocking negotiations, essentially abusing its role as a mediator. He was the fifth lawmaker to urge Congress to scrap Qatar’s status as a major non-NATO ally granted to the Arab nation in 2022 for supporting evacuations from Afghanistan. Any such demotion would not only be a global embarrassment for Qatar but would relegate it below Egypt and other competitors in the neighborhood who also hold the same designation.

“Qatar needs to make it clear to Hamas that there will be repercussions,” Hoyer said in a statement. Earlier this month, Republican Sens. Ted Budd, Joni Ernst, and Rick Scott introduced a bill that would require the United States to conduct a review to “terminate the designation” if Qatar didn’t expel or extradite Hamas’s leadership, “including Ismail Haniyeh, Khalil al-Hayya, Khaled Mashal,” its biggest leaders.

Orly Gilboa—the mother of 19-year-old Daniella Gilboa, who has been held hostage by Hamas since Oct. 7, 2023—said that the United States’ pressure on Qatar could work. “Qatar supports Hamas, but they want good relations with the U.S., so they will do what the U.S. wants them to do,” she told Foreign Policy over Zoom.

But some U.S. lawmakers said the move to scrap the status was premature and unwarranted. That has encouraged Doha to stay the course. But the Arab official believes that those who asked to strip Qatar of the designation are perhaps pro-Netanyahu lawmakers and do not speak for the Oval Office.

Budd’s legislation argues that if Hamas is refusing “reasonable” negotiations, then there is no reason for Qatar to continue hosting Hamas’s political office or members, parroting the viewpoint of many in Israel’s security community. But “reasonable” is being defined differently by the various parties concerned.

While Israel expects Qatar to convince Hamas to release hostages and then intends to resume the war to eliminate the group entirely from Gaza, Qatar finds merit in Hamas’s demand of a permanent cease-fire. This is the crux of the disagreement between Qatar and Israel.

“I don’t think it’s an unreasonable request,” said an Arab official familiar with the negotiations. “If they release all hostages, they want an end to the war.”

However, the Israeli security community suspects that’s not all Hamas wants. They argue it could have achieved an end to the war had it agreed to disarm and leave Gaza. Israelis fear that Hamas wants to return to Gaza, victorious, and carry out more attacks that match the cruelty of Oct. 7.

“We can’t hand Hamas a victory,” said Eran Lerman, a former Israeli deputy national security advisor. “After what they have done, we refuse to live with Hamas as our neighbors. And it’s not just Netanyahu, but there is wide support for the policy to eradicate Hamas.” Israel is ready to offer only a temporary truce until Hamas has been vanquished.

Doha makes the case that since the war has limited its ability to send aid to Gaza, it simply doesn’t have the kind of leverage it once did over Hamas’s leaders holding the hostages inside Gaza.

“Sinwar will rather die inside Gaza than agree to a deal to leave,” said an Arab official aware of the negotiations, referring to Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader within Gaza who was behind the Oct. 7 attack. “This is the mistake—this is what Israelis are not understanding.”

He said that threatening to kick out Hamas’s political leaders from Qatar will not bring the desired pressure on Hamas. Sinwar, who is making the final decisions about the hostage negotiations, doesn’t care about his group’s political representatives or where they live, “whether in Qatar, Turkey, Oman, or Iran.”

Israel also doesn’t care where Hamas’s leaders reside and has already declared that it will hunt them down wherever they may choose to hide. But Israeli leaders say that in the short term, they are focused on bringing back the hostages and eliminating Hamas.

Lerman said that Egypt has already been partly involved in negotiations, noting that it could become a single point of communication with Hamas if Qatar doesn’t succeed in mediating the release of the hostages in exchange for a temporary truce not a permanent cease-fire. “It’s not like we won’t be left with a channel of communication,” he said. “If Qatar cannot live up to its claim, that it has leverage over Hamas, then what’s the point?”

Some in the Israeli security community believe that once the long-expected Rafah operation has been successfully carried out and all of Gaza brought under Israeli occupation, Hamas’s leaders and members would be in for a run for their lives and more inclined to accept a deal on Israeli terms.

“Hamas will feel a very different kind of threat than they feel now—that will change their minds,” Lerman said.

It’s a tricky gamble. If Qatar walks out, Israel risks losing a mediator with more influence over Hamas than any other Arab state, and if Doha fails in ensuring safe hostage release, it may damage its ties with the United States. Thus far, neither side is willing to concede, and negotiations will likely go down the wire, further procrastinating the homecoming of the more than 130 Israelis believed to remain in Gaza.

Families of hostages have said that they want their loved ones released “despite the difficult price,” but they also don’t want Hamas to live next door, preferably.

“I prefer if there is a solution,” Gilboa said. “Maybe Hamas’s leaders can move to Qatar and live there.”

[notyourtoday]

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Caption on post -

Israeli strikes on a camp in Gaza's Khan Younis have killed at least 90 Palestinians, half of whom were women and children, and wounded 300, according to Gaza's health ministry.

Hamas stated that the bombardment caused a "massacre" in tents housing displaced people in the Mawasi district of Khan Younis, an area that Israel had reportedly designated a safe Zone.

The lsraeli army claimed that the target of the strikes was Mohammed Deif, head of Hamas's military wing. lsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his government has "no certainty" that Mohammed Deif was killed in the strike.

Khalil al-Hayya, the deputy head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, responded by reiterating that lsrael's claims about targeting Deif are false and that he is alive and well.

According to medical authorities in Gaza, more than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since 7 October.

By @middleeasteye on Instagram.

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Israel commits three massacres across Gaza in less than one hour

At least 40 were killed on Tuesday in Israeli attacks on the southern, central, and northern Gaza Strip

The Israeli army committed new massacres against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip on 16 July.  The Health Ministry in Gaza announced on Tuesday that 17 people, including several children, were killed and at least 26 injured following an Israeli attack on Al-Attar Street near the designated “safe zone” in the coastal Al-Mawasi area west of the southern city of Khan Yunis.

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At least 40 have been killed in total, according to Al Jazeera. Israel has committed numerous massacres against Gazan civilians over the past few days.  Israeli forces carried out an airstrike on the UNRWA-run Abu Oreiban school in central Gaza's Nuseirat Camp on 14 July, massacring at least 15 displaced Palestinians and injuring over 70, the Gaza health ministry. Israeli forces have carried out over 40 massacres in the crowded camp since the start of the war in October. Israel killed at least 90 civilians and injured hundreds in Al-Mawasi on 13 July in a strike targeting an area designated as a “safe zone” by Tel Aviv.  Last week, four schools were targeted by Israel in a span of four days. 

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Netanyahu implied in a press conference on 13 July that military pressure was necessary to make Hamas give up its demands for an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the strip.  “We will continue to stand by the positions that will lead us to the end of this war,” Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya said on Saturday, implying that the resistance movement will not abandon its terms.