“What Biden announced are principles that Hamas perceives as positive, but we need to review them in full”, Abu Marzouk, the head of Hamas's International Relations Office, said on Sunday in an interview with Beirut-based Al Mayadeen Network.
He made the comments two days after Biden said during a White House press conference that Israel had put forward a new proposal for the Gaza ceasefire and added, “It’s time for this war to end.”
Biden also said that the proposal, which he said involves three phases and calls for the release of Israeli captives, had been transmitted to Hamas via Qatar. But Abu Marzouk told Al Mayadeen that Hamas had not received any document regarding the proposal referenced by Biden in his Friday speech.
The Hamas official also said that the movement will not accept any amendments to an old document concerning the ceasefire and the withdrawal from Gaza, stressing that “the Resistance will stand by its people and accept the plan” if it includes an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from Gaza.
Regarding the previous mediation efforts, which failed to establish a ceasefire in Gaza, Abu Marzouk explained that they failed partly because of disagreement over “the lasting of the ceasefire” and the number of civilian Israeli captives who would be released.
If the proposal outlined by Biden addresses the points of disagreement, Hamas will agree to the deal, he said.
Biden has said on his X account that the new plan involves three phases, the first of which would include a complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated areas in Gaza, the return of Palestinian civilians to their homes and a surge in humanitarian aid. The first phase would also include the release of some captives held in Gaza and some remains of captives.
The second phase includes a permanent end to hostilities, exchange for the release of the remaining living captives, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, according to Biden's post on X social media platform, formerly Twitter.
The third phase, he said, would include a major reconstruction plan for Gaza, and the final return of the remains of captives to their families.
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