Hamas has said it will carry on fighting until an independent Palestinian state is established in a fresh rebuke to a key Israeli demand to end the war in Gaza.
The militants said Hamas would not stop “armed resistance” until an “independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital” is recognised.
Israel considers the disarmament of Hamas a key condition for any deal to end the conflict, but Hamas has repeatedly said it is not willing to lay down its weapons.
Last week, indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel aimed at securing a 60-day ceasefire in the Gaza war and deal for the release of hostages ended in deadlock.
On Tuesday, meditators Qatar and Egypt endorsed a declaration by France and Saudi Arabia outlining steps toward a two-state solution on condition of Hamas handed arms to a Western-backed Palestinian Authority.
Last month, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said any future independent Palestinian state would be a platform to destroy Israel and said, for that reason, security control over the occupied Palestinian territories must remain with Israel.
Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Egypt last week called for the terrorist group to “disarm” and disband. It was the first time these countries have condemned Hamas and demanded it play no part in the future of Palestine.
The declaration read: “In the context of ending the war in Gaza, Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority, with international engagement and support, in line with the objective of a sovereign and independent Palestinian state.”
Mr Netanyahu also criticised several countries, including the UK, for announcing plans to recognise a Palestinian state in response to devastation of Gaza.
The war started when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza.
Israel’s subsequent military assault on Gaza has turned much of the enclave into a wasteland, killed over 60,000 Palestinians and set off a humanitarian catastrophe.
Israel and Hamas traded blame after the most recent round of talks ended in an impasse, with gaps lingering over issues including the extent of an Israeli military withdrawal.
Hamas also condemned Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff’s visit to an aid distribution centre in Gaza on Friday as “nothing more than a premeditated staged show”.
Mr Witkoff and Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, visited a centre run by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Hamas said the trip was “designed to mislead public opinion, polish the image of the occupation, and provide it with political cover for its starvation campaign and continued systematic killing of defenceless children and civilians in the Gaza Strip”.
