Al Jazeera reported that Hamas rejected a statement from the US State Department that cited “credible reports” suggesting that Palestinian groups were imminently violating the ceasefire agreement with Israel.
Hamas said in a statement on Sunday that the US claims are false and “completely consistent with misleading Israeli propaganda and provide cover for the occupation’s continued crimes and systematic aggression” against Palestinians in Gaza.
The US State Department said Hamas was planning attacks on civilians in the Gaza Strip in a “grave violation of the ceasefire agreement” and called on mediating countries to demand that Hamas uphold its obligations under the US-backed peace deal.
The State Department said in a statement late Saturday that it had obtained “credible reports indicating imminent ceasefire violations by Hamas against Gaza residents.”
“If Hamas proceeds with this attack, measures will be taken to protect the Gaza population and maintain the integrity of the ceasefire,” the ministry said, without giving specific details of the planned attack.
Hamas called on the US to “stop repeating the misleading narrative of the[Israeli]occupation and focus on curbing repeated violations of the ceasefire agreement.”
“The facts on the ground reveal just the opposite, as the occupation authorities are forming, arming and financing criminal organizations that carry out killings, kidnappings, theft of aid vehicles and assaults on Palestinian civilians. They openly admit their crimes in the media and in video clips, confirming the occupation’s involvement in the spread of chaos and the disruption of security.”
Hamas said Gaza’s police “with the support of the broad public and community fulfill their national obligation to pursue these gangs and hold them accountable according to a clear legal framework, in order to protect the population and preserve public and private property.”