Hamas is more interested in igniting the Middle East during Ramadan than in pausing the Gaza war, the Mossad warned on Saturday night as it seemed that a hostage deal was not in the offing before the start of the Muslim holy month that begins on Sunday night.
“At this stage, Hamas is holding to its position as if it was uninterested in a deal and is striving to ignite the region during Ramadan at the expense of the Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip,” the Mossad said.
It spoke after Mossad Director David Barnea met Friday with CIA Director William Burns in the framework of the relentless effort to advance a deal for the release of the remaining 134 hostages.
The mediators, Egypt and Qatar, with the help of the United States, had hoped to see a deal in place that would see the release of some 40 hostages in exchange for a six-week pause in the war in time for Ramadan.
Israel, Qatar, Egypt, and the US have all feared that without a deal, Hamas would seek to use the religious fervor of Ramadan to ignite violence, particularly in Jerusalem, that would set back efforts for a deal.
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said Hamas was preventing a deal and that its leaders were only interested in “their survival and the conditions they will receive” and in continuing the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza.
US President Joe Biden told reporters in Pennsylvania on Friday that the situation was “looking tough.”
A reporter asked him, “Are you concerned about violence in east Jerusalem without a deal?" Biden shot back, “I sure am.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday also blamed Hamas for the absence of a deal, telling reporters that the US was “intensely focused on seeing if we can get a ceasefire with the release of hostages, the expansion of humanitarian assistance, and an environment for working on an enduring resolution.”
He noted, however, that “the ball” was in Hamas’s court.
Blinken on Friday spoke about a hostage deal with his Qatari, Egyptian, and Saudi counterparts.
The Mossad said on Saturday that talks were ongoing. “It should be emphasized that the contacts and cooperation with the mediators are ongoing in an effort to narrow the gaps and advance agreements.”
Hostage talks expected to resume in Cairo next week
A Hamas delegation, which had been in Cairo last week and left for the weekend, was expected to return for further negotiations.
A Hamas source told Reuters the group's delegation was "unlikely" to make another visit to Cairo over the weekend for talks.
Hamas blames Israel for the impasse in negotiations for a longer ceasefire and the release of 134 hostages believed to be still held in Gaza - saying it refuses to give guarantees to end the war or pull its forces from the enclave.
In a statement on Saturday marking Ramadan, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh vowed the Palestinians will continue to fight Israel "until they regain freedom and independence.”
Among the dividing issues has been Israel’s insistence that it must be allowed to finish its military campaign to destroy Hamas and the terror group’s demand for a permanent ceasefire and a full IDF withdrawal from Gaza.
Israel has also asked for a list of the hostages that will be released and a list of the Palestinian security prisoners and terrorists that will be freed in exchange.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Qatar had threatened to expel senior Hamas officials living in their country unless a deal is reached. It reported that the Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, believes that his organization has the upper hand in the negotiations due to political disunity in Israel and international pressure on Israel over humanitarian assistance.
Five months into Israel's air and ground military operation in Gaza, Hamas has asserted that nearly 31,000 Palestinians have been killed, and thousands more bodies are feared buried under rubble. Israel has said that over 11,000 of the fatalities are combatants.
The war was triggered by the October 7 attack by Hamas on southern Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and 253 taken hostage.
The Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.