Hamas refuses to attend Gaza cease-fire talks as Biden says it’s ‘still possible’ to reach deal

The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas said Sunday it would not participate in new negotiations for a cease-fire in Gaza this week unless mediators presented a plan based on previous talks. 

‘The movement calls on the mediators to present a plan to implement what was agreed upon by the movement on July 2, 2024, based on [President] Biden’s vision and the UN Security Council resolution,’ Hamas said in a statement posted on Telegram. 

The terrorist group, which is still holding dozens of hostages including Americans, said it has shown ‘flexibility’ throughout the negotiating process but that Israeli actions – including the assassination of its leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran last month – indicate it is not serious about pursuing a cease-fire agreement. 

Hamas urged mediators, including the United States, Egypt and Qatar, to submit a plan to implement what was agreed on last month ‘instead of going to more rounds of negotiations or new proposals that provide cover for the occupation’s aggression.’

President Biden told CBS News he believes it is ‘still possible’ for both sides to reach a deal that includes the release of 115 hostages. 

‘The plan I put together, endorsed by G7, endorsed by the U.N. Security Council, et cetera, is still viable,’ Biden told the network in an interview published Sunday. ‘And I’m working literally every single day – and my whole team – to see to it that it doesn’t escalate into a regional war. But it easily can.’

Meanwhile, an Israeli senior official involved in negotiations has derided Hamas’ announcement as ‘a tactical move in preparation for a possible attack by Iran and Hezbollah and to try to obtain better terms for a deal.’ 

The official told the Israeli news outlet Walla: ‘If Hamas does not come to the table, we will continue to crush their forces in Gaza.’ 

The statements come after the Israeli military ordered more evacuations in southern Gaza, a day after a deadly airstrike on a school-turned-shelter in the north killed at least 80 Palestinians, according to Hamas-affiliated local health authorities. 

The latest evacuation orders apply to areas of Khan Younis, Gaza’s second-largest city, including part of an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone from which the military said rockets had been fired. Israel accuses Hamas and other militants of hiding among civilians and launching attacks from residential areas.

The war began when Hamas-led militants burst into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and rampaged through farming communities and army bases near the border, killing around 1,200 Israelis and abducting around 250 people. Of the remaining hostages, Israeli authorities believe around a third are likely dead.

Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants, says the Palestinian death toll from the war is approaching 40,000.

The months-long conflict has threatened to trigger a regional war as Israel has traded fire with Iran and its militant allies across the region.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.