Hamas responds to Netanyahu regarding "handing over Gaza to Arab countries"

Arab Sea Newspaper - Special

**((Arab Sea)) Special:** The Hamas movement considered this Thursday evening that the statements of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding "controlling the Gaza Strip without retaining it and handing it over to Arab forces that do not threaten Israel" represent "a clear coup against the ongoing negotiation track." In a statement, the movement said that Netanyahu's statements "clearly reveal the real motives behind his withdrawal from the last round of negotiations, despite the parties' nearing a final agreement." The movement added that "Netanyahu's plans to expand the aggression confirm beyond any doubt that he seeks to get rid of his prisoners and sacrifice them, in service of his personal interests and his extremist ideological agendas." The statement stressed that "Gaza will remain impervious to occupation and attempts to impose guardianship over it," adding that "expanding the aggression against the Palestinian people will not be a picnic, and its price will be high and costly for the occupation and its army." The statement called on Arab and Islamic countries and the international community to "condemn and reject Netanyahu's dangerous statements," demanding "urgent action to stop the aggression and end the occupation, enable the Palestinian people to exercise their right to self-determination, and hold Israeli leaders accountable for their crimes." Netanyahu had told the American "Fox News" network: "We intend, in order to ensure our security, to remove Hamas from the Gaza Strip and enable the residents to liberate themselves from Hamas in the Strip, and hand over the Strip to a civilian government that does not belong to Hamas or any party that calls for the destruction of Israel."