Hamas denounces Israeli ‘failure’ to withdraw from Gaza-Egypt border

GAZA CITY: Hamas on Monday condemned Israel for keeping troops in an area of southern Gaza along the Egyptian border, saying that they should have already withdrawn under a truce deal.

The Philadelphi Corridor, a strip of land on the Palestinian side of the Egypt-Gaza border also known as Salaheddin axis, has been a key sticking point in ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, at war since October 2023.

“The Israeli occupation did not abide by the gradual reduction of its forces in the Salaheddin axis during the first phase” of the truce which began on January 19, Hamas said in a statement.

It added that Israel “did not begin its withdrawal on the 42nd day as stipulated in the agreement”, and had not completed it “by the 50th day of the agreement, which was yesterday (Sunday)”.

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The specific terms of the ceasefire agreement were never made public, making it difficult to verify Hamas’s claims.

In its statement, the Palestinian group said that Israel’s “failure to withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor” was a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire agreement “and a deliberate attempt to undermine and nullify it”.

Israeli forces seized control of the Philadelphi Corridor during an assault on southern Gaza last year, and officials have repeatedly insisted that retaining control there was necessary to prevent weapons smuggling into the Palestinian territory.

“Maintaining absolute control over the Philadelphi Corridor is non-negotiable from a security standpoint,” Defence Minister Israel Katz has said.

Hamas called on mediators Qatar, Egypt and the United States to intervene and ensure that Israel withdraws its forces.

“We demand that the mediators and the international community intervene immediately to ensure the occupation’s withdrawal and the resumption of the second-phase negotiations without delay,” the group said.

Earlier on Monday, Israel sent a team of negotiators to Doha for talks aimed at extending the ceasefire.

Its first phase expired on March 1, with no agreement yet on subsequent stages that could secure a lasting end to the war.

Hamas wants immediate negotiations on the next phase, but Israel prefers extending phase one.