Reuters reported today that Israel has accepted an extension of the current 72-hour ceasefire, now in middle of its third day, but Hamas has refused any extension, threatening to renew hostilities as soon as the ceasefire expires.
An Israeli official said late on Wednesday that Israel “has expressed its readiness to extend the truce under its current terms” beyond Friday morning’s deadline for the three-day deal that took effect on Tuesday and has so far held.
But a senior Hamas political leader based in Cairo, Moussa Abu Marzouk, said on Wednesday night that “there is no agreement” to prolong the ceasefire.
Reuters observes that if Hamas refuses to extend the truce, it runs the risk of “further alienat[ing] Egypt,” which “has been hostile to the Islamist group and which ultimately controls Gaza’s main gateway to the world, the Rafah border crossing.”
Despite this, Hamas official Izzat al-Rishiq tweeted that Hamas’ demands had to be met because “resistance fighters have their hands on the trigger.”
Senior Hamas member Moussa Abu Marzouk wrote on his Twitter account that “there is no agreement on the extension of the truce.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman thanked Secretary of State John Kerry for his support yesterday, and termed Hamas’ threat to resume fire “extortion.”
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman told US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday that the threat by the factions in Gaza to resume rocket fire at Israel and refuse to extend the cease-fire amounts to “extortion.”
Liberman told his American counterpart that Israel is prepared for all possibilities. The foreign minister also thanked Kerry for Washington’s “unflinching support” for Israel during Wednesday’s UN session.
The ceasefire is scheduled to expire at 8:00 Israel time Friday morning.
[Photo: Hamas Izz al-Din al-Qassam website]