Hamas convinced new ceasefire talks are attempt to avert Iran attack, sources say

Sources close to Hamas say that the Gaza terror group believes the US, Egypt and Qatar coordinated with Israel ahead of releasing a joint statement last week calling for both parties to return to the negotiating table and finish the arrangements for a ceasefire and hostage release deal.

The terror group said yesterday that it would not join the upcoming negotiations on Thursday, unless they were based upon plans from previous rounds of talks rather than on amended frameworks.

According to two unnamed sources, Hamas is convinced that the renewed push for negotiations was an attempt to deter responses from Iran and Hezbollah to the assassination of the group’s chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which they have blamed Israel for, and a top Hezbollah leader in an IDF strike in Beirut.

A Palestinian official close to the talks says that things may change, regarding Hamas’s decision to remain absent from the negotiating table, but that at present “Hamas believes [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu isn’t serious about reaching a deal.”