A senior leader of the Islamic Hamas movement on Thursday said the Israeli commitment to the Egyptian-brokered ceasefire agreement between Israel and Gaza militants groups "is weak."
Osama al-Muzeini told reporters that because of the weak Israeli commitment to the truce, "we have to think carefully as to hold another new deal with Israel," referring to the prisoner swap talks between Hamas and Israel.
Egypt brokered a six-month truce between Israel and Gaza militants groups led by Hamas movement, which came to effect on June 19. The truce has been implemented only in Gaza, and the West Bank was excluded.
According to the truce agreement, militant groups stop firing makeshift rockets from Gaza at Israel, while Israel gradually lifts restrictions imposed on Gaza commercial crossing points on the borders with Israel.
However, Hamas has been complaining that Israel has not shown a real and serious commitment to the truce agreement, and had violated the truce several times and repeatedly shut down Gaza commercial crossings.
Israel has temporarily shut down the border crossings for several times since the truce, in response to Palestinian rocket attacks.
Al-Muzeini, meanwhile, insisted that his movement won't make any concessions to its demands for the release of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails in return of the release of captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
Hamas and two aligned groups kidnapped Shalit in a cross-border raid near Gaza Strip on June 25, 2006.
Hamas had suspended the talks with Israel on the prisoner swap earlier this month, saying that there would be no talks on Shalit's case until Israel shows a full commitment to the truce and reopens all the closed Gaza Strip crossings.
Source:Xinhua
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