Report: Hamas declares no ceasefire talks with Israel after Rafah attack

45 Palestinians, including children and women, were killed in Israeli air strikes near the city of Rafah (file)

Hamas has reportedly informed mediators that it will not participate in any negotiations on a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip or a prisoner exchange following Israel’s attack on Rafah, the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip, on Sunday evening.

The decision was made in response to “Israeli army attacks on tents housing displaced civilians in northwest Rafah,” in which dozens of them were killed or injured, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing a Hamas source.

The source also said on Monday that the Hamas leadership had not received any official communication from mediators in Egypt or Qatar about the resumption of negotiations.

At least 45 Palestinians, including children and women, were killed in Israeli air strikes on tents for displaced people near the city of Rafah, Gaza health authorities said in a press release on Monday.

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said at a press conference in Beirut on Monday that Israel would only accept the hostages under the conditions we presented to the mediators.

Hamdan added that Hamas’s conditions for reaching an agreement, including a permanent ceasefire, remained unchanged.

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