Gaza: According to the group and Haniyeh’s family, Israeli airstrikes on a vehicle in Gaza killed three sons and three grandchildren of Ismail Haniyeh, the chief of Hamas’ political bureau. Haniyeh now lives in Qatar and is the tough-talking face of Hamas’ international diplomacy after six months of war with Israel in Gaza, which has resulted in widespread death and destruction.
The three sons, Hazem, Amir, and Mohammad, were killed when the car they were driving was bombed in Gaza’s Al-Shati camp, Hamas claimed. Three of his grandchildren were also killed in the attack, according to Hamas-controlled media. Haaretz, an Israeli news channel, uploaded a video showing Haniyeh being informed of his sons and grandchildren’s deaths.
איסמאעיל הנייה מקבל את ההודעה על מות בניו ונכדיו pic.twitter.com/nnuT1JB09L
— הארץ חדשות (@haaretznewsvid) April 10, 2024
Haniyeh accused Israel of acting with “the spirit of revenge and murder,” claiming his sons were “martyred on the road to liberating” Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. “The criminal enemy is driven by the spirit of revenge and murder and does not value any standards or laws,” he said in a phone interview with The Ultimate News.
“The enemy believes that by targeting the families of the leaders, it will push them to give up the demands of our people,” he went on to say. “Anyone who believes that targeting my sons will force Hamas to change its stance is delusional.”
Hamas Still Negotiating for Ceasefire
Despite concerns that the deaths of Haniyeh’s family members would jeopardise ongoing ceasefire negotiations in Cairo, Haniyeh appeared to continue the talks. “The blood of my sons is not dearer than the blood of our people,” said Haniyeh, who is 61 years old and has 13 children. However, the Israeli military said it was investigating the deaths of Haniyeh’s sons and grandchildren.
According to relatives, the three sons and three grandchildren paid family visits to Shati, their home refugee camp in Gaza City, on the first day of the Muslim Eid ul-Fitr holiday. Haniyeh’s eldest son confirmed on Facebook that his three brothers were killed. “Thanks to God who honored us with the martyrdom of my brothers, Hazem, Amir, and Mohammad and their children,” Abdel-Salam Haniyeh said.
Haniyeh was appointed as the militant group’s top leader in 2017, and he has moved between Turkey and Qatar’s capital Doha to avoid Israeli-imposed travel restrictions in blockaded Gaza, allowing him to act as a negotiator in the latest ceasefire negotiations or communicate with Hamas’ main ally Iran. Israel considers the entire Hamas leadership to be terrorists, accusing Haniyeh and other leaders of “pulling the strings of the Hamas terror organization”.
Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Negotiations in Cairo
Meanwhile, Hamas said on Tuesday that it was reviewing an Israeli cease-fire proposal in the more than six-month-old Gaza conflict, but that it was “intransigent” and did not meet any of the Palestinian demands. “Our demands are clear and specific, and we will not compromise on them. “The enemy will be delusional if it believes that targeting my sons at the height of the negotiations and before the movement responds will force Hamas to change its position,” Haniyeh stated.
Earlier reports said Hamas had rejected a cease-fire proposal, and an official said no progress had been made in the talks. However, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz described the Cairo talks as the closest the sides have come to a deal since a brief November truce that saw Hamas release nearly half of its hostages. Of the 253 people detained by Hamas on October 7, 133 are still held captive.
Meanwhile, Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz claimed Hamas had been defeated militarily, but he also stated that Israel will fight against it for years to come. “From a military standpoint, Hamas is defeated. In a statement to the media in Sderot, Gantz stated that its fighters have been eliminated or are in hiding and that its capabilities are “crippled.”
This comes as Israel prepares to launch a military operation in Rafah, where more than half of the territory’s 2.3 million residents are currently sheltering, causing global concern. US President Joe Biden has criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the Gaza conflict and urged his government to flood the besieged territory with aid, increasing pressure on Israel to reach a ceasefire and widening a schism between the staunch allies.
Pressure on Netanyahu
Biden has been a vocal supporter of Israel’s war on Hamas. But in recent weeks, his patience has appeared to wane, and his administration has taken a more stern stance towards Israel, rattling the countries’ decades-old alliance and deepening Israel’s international isolation over the war. The most serious disagreement has been regarding Israel’s plans for an offensive in Rafah.
Netanyahu, who is on trial for alleged corruption, is under pressure to decide on a post-war strategy for Gaza. Critics claim he is delaying because he does not want to enrage his ultranationalist governing partners, who support resettling the Gaza Strip, which Israel withdrew from in 2005 and which Netanyahu has ruled out.
Netanyahu’s governing partners are also opposed to making significant concessions to Hamas and have threatened to leave the government, which would lead to the collapse of the ruling coalition and new elections. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, over 33,400 Palestinians have died as a result of the ongoing fighting.