Hamas rejects Board of Peace envoy’s disarmament plan – report

Gaza terror group lashes out at US-backed Board of Peace envoy, accusing him of serving Israel’s interests, and denounces framework for Gaza demilitarization.

By World Israel News Staff

The Hamas terror organization has rejected a proposal put forward by the envoy of the US-backed Board of Peace, a senior Palestinian official familiar with the talks said.

On Tuesday, the BBC published a report citing the official, who said that the Islamist terror group refused a framework for disarmament sent by the Board of Peace envoy and former United Nations special coordinator for the peace process Nikolay Mladenov.

In March, Mladenov’s office drafted a plan for demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, with the goal of removing the primary roadblock to the implementation of phase two of the White House’s Gaza peace plan.

However, according to the official, Hamas said that it will not begin to negotiate the issue until Israel has complied with its demands.

“We are waiting for Mladenov to provide a clear timetable for Israel to fulfill the remaining obligations of phase one, along with guarantees to halt Israeli violations, before any discussion of phase two begins,” a senior Hamas official told the BBC.

The terrorist organization accused Mladenov of demonstrating pro-Israeli bias in his approach to the negotiations, while the Hamas official cited by the BBC said that the group would only discuss disarmament as part of a comprehensive resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and not as part of a piecemeal agreement.

Such a broad deal must include Palestinian statehood, the official said.

Mladenov recognizes that Israel is unwilling to agree to such terms, the official continued, and drafted his proposal with Israel’s position in mind.

Hamas officials traveled to Cairo on Tuesday for talks with Egypt’s intelligence chief on the Board of Peace’s Gaza plan.