A surprising statement from Hamas: they would immediately lay down their arms on one condition

According to an interview published Thursday, Halil al-Hajja said the Islamist militant group was willing to agree to a five-year or longer ceasefire with Israel, and would lay down its arms and transform itself into a political party if an independent Palestinian state could be established within the pre-1967 borders.

Since its establishment, Hamas has refused to recognize the State of Israel until now.

During the negotiations on the ceasefire and the exchange of prisoners, Hajja, representing Hamas, also spoke about the fact that the organization wants to join the rival Fatah-led Palestine Liberation Organizationthrough which he wants a unified government in Gaza and the West Bank.

The relationship between Fatah and Hamas deteriorated permanently after the 2006 elections. After the armed fighting that broke out in Gaza, the moderate Fatah was pushed out of the zone.

The Palestinian leader also said that Hamas would accept it

the establishment of a fully sovereign Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and the return of Palestinian refugees in accordance with international resolutions,

Along Israel’s pre-1967 borders. If this happens, the military wing of the group will disband, he declared.

“Experience shows that when those who fought against the occupiers won their own state, their rights and became independent, what did they do? They became a political party and their armed forces were transformed into a national army,” explained Hajja.

Despite all this, Hamas its official political program still includes itthat the organization

rejects any solution other than the complete liberation of Palestine from the river to the sea,

which means the entire area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.

Israel and the Fatah-led Palestinian National Authority have not yet responded to Hajja’s words. Following the terrorist attack on October 7, 2023, the Israeli leadership vowed to wipe Hamas off the face of the earth.

Cover image source: Getty Images