Hamas has rejected disarmament, saying it will not lay down arms unless a sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital is established. The statement came after ceasefire talks with Israel collapsed, according to Firstpost.
Mediators Qatar and Egypt had supported a proposal urging Hamas to hand over weapons to the Palestinian Authority as part of a two-state solution. But Hamas reaffirmed its stance on “armed resistance.”
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu opposes Palestinian statehood and insists on Hamas’ disarmament as a condition for peace.
The war, sparked by Hamas’s October 2023 attack, has left over 60,000 Palestinians dead. Meanwhile, US envoy Steve Witkoff met with families of Israeli hostages in Tel Aviv, Firstpost reported.
