Israel must meet demands or face long war: Hamas

Israel must meet demands or face long war: Hamas
Sun Aug 17, 2014 09:21:05

Hamas's head of foreign affairs, Osama Hamdan has said that offers made to the Palestinian delegation in Cairo do not meet the aspirations of the people.

Hamdan said on his official Facebook page Saturday: "Israel must accept the demands of the Palestinian people or face a long war."

Israel launched its military campaign on July 8 under the pretext of stopping rocket fire from Hamas in Gaza.

The United Nations said 425,000 of 1.8 million population of Gaza have been displaced by the war, which has killed at least 1,980 Palestinians and 67 Israelis.

Most of the Palestinian dead have been civilians, hospital officials in the small, densely populated enclave say.

Israelis and the Palestinians agreed Wednesday to extend a cease-fire agreement in Gaza by five days to continue indirect negotiations on a lasting truce. The cease-fire expires on Monday. The two sides are not meeting face-to-face in Cairo.

Hamas's demands include lifting a blockade on Gaza, reducing movement restrictions on the territory's 1.8 million residents, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh told al-Aqsa television last week.

NTJ/HH

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