Gaza ceasefire deal a means to ‘stopping the genocide’: Palestinian politician

GAZA (Agencies): The leader of Palestinian National Initiative (PNI), Mustafa Barghouti, has described the recently announced ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas as a means to stopping the “genocide” of the Palestinian people in the besieged Gaza Strip.

“This [ceasefire agreement] means stopping the genocide in Gaza and the war crimes faced by the Palestinians, including collective punishment and ethnic cleaning,” he told Al Arabiya English.

“For us the most important thing is to stop the devastation and the destruction.”

Celebrations erupted across the globe after the US, Egypt and Qatar announced a ceasefire deal on Wednesday to end the fighting in Gaza in return for the release of hostages and gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the war torn strip.

The announcement, however, was met with caution as Israel continued to strike the Palestinian enclave, killing at least 20 people within hours of the ceasefire announcement.

“We are not yet 100 percent sure,” Barghouti said echoing a similar attitude, as he called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “selfish man” looking to preserve his own political interests.

Israel on Thursday accused Hamas of backtracking on parts of the ceasefire deal, and said the Israeli cabinet will not meet on the deal until Hamas’s agreement is confirmed.

“Hamas has reneged on parts of the agreement reached with the mediators and Israel in an effort to extort last-minute concessions,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement, adding the situation created a “last minute crisis.”

The six-week ceasefire deal will go into effect on Sunday, January 19. The details of the agreement, which were publicized by President Joe Biden during a speech on Wednesday, closely reflect the deal he proposed last year, leading many political commenters and analysts to question the months-long delay in achieving the ceasefire.

“I think we lost six months and in the process 10,000 Palestinians and some Israeli captives,” Barghouti said.