Hamas: We are open to prisoner exchange initiatives in exchange for a comprehensive ceasefire

Hamas leader Osama Hamdan said on Tuesday that the movement is “open” to initiatives and proposals presented by several countries regarding the exchange of prisoners with Israel, in exchange for a comprehensive ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

This came in a press conference held by Hamdan at the movement’s headquarters in Beirut, in which he said, “Our people are not waiting for a temporary truce that will be violated by the occupation (Israel) with more massacres against civilians, but rather are waiting for a comprehensive cessation of aggression.”

He added: "There has been a lot of talk recently about initiatives and proposals about negotiating a prisoner exchange, and here we confirm the movement's clear position on the necessity of stopping the criminal aggression against our people."

1. He continued: "We have openly received proposals and initiatives from a number of countries (which he did not specify) related to the Gaza battle, and the movement is open to all initiatives that achieve a comprehensive cessation of aggression against our people, and to everything that achieves the highest interests of our people."
2. 
   

Hamdan explained, "Israel is presenting to the mediators ideas for calm that do not live up to the sacrifices of our Palestinian people. There is still no mature initiative on a ceasefire, and the occupation army is trying to change its tactics in order to start moving backwards."

During the past few days, Israeli media reported that there were negotiations between Israel and Hamas, under Egyptian and Qatari sponsorship, regarding a prisoner exchange agreement between the two parties, but Hamas repeatedly affirmed that it would not enter into negotiations on this matter without a comprehensive ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. .

The ongoing Israeli war against the Gaza Strip since October 7, until Tuesday, left 20,915 dead and 54,918 wounded, most of them children and women, massive destruction of infrastructure and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.