The Palestinian president's spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh has called for efforts from both Hamas and Israel to fulfill their commitments and realize lasting peace in Gaza, noting that the Palestinian National Authority should have post-war jurisdiction over Gaza.
Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan announced on Thursday that the Gaza ceasefire agreement will go into effect immediately after the Israeli government approves it.
The agreement represents a final cessation of hostilities on Gaza, Hamdan told the Qatari Alaraby Television Network in an interview, stressing that any prisoner exchange will not take place until a complete cessation of hostilities is declared.
"To achieve a comprehensive ceasefire and end the killing, genocide and forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, both sides must fulfill their commitments. If both sides could successfully seize the existing opportunity, it could become an important start [of a new situation]," said Abu Rudeineh.
Abu Rudeineh said certain forces, who are attempting to exclude the Palestinian National Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization from the post-war jurisdiction over Gaza, are doomed to fail.
"The Palestinian National Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization are the only legitimate representatives in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. And any solution that ignores this principle is doomed to be unsustainable," said the spokesman.
Senior Hamas official Hamdan said the first phase of the agreement will include the Israeli withdrawal from "Gaza City, the north, Rafah, and Khan Younis, and the opening of five crossings for the entry of humanitarian aid."
Drone operations in the Gaza Strip's airspace will cease during the prisoner release process, which will involve 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and 1,700 other prisoners, he said.
International agencies, not the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, will oversee the distribution of aid, he added.
Hamdan stressed that Gaza's administration is "a national affair" and "no external interference will be permitted."
Israeli and Hamas delegations have been holding negotiations brokered by Qatari, Egyptian and U.S. mediators in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh since Monday.
After several days of negotiations, the two sides agreed on the "first phase" of the Trump-backed peace plan, which includes a ceasefire and the release of some hostages and prisoners, marking a major breakthrough in the two-year conflict.
Since the war erupted on Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli strikes have devastated the Gaza Strip, causing widespread famine and displacement, and killing at least 67,194 people and injuring 169,890 others, Gaza-based health authorities said Thursday.
Palestinian National Authority should have post-war jurisdiction over Gaza: president's spokesman
