Sa’ar tells German FM Hamas uninterested in deal as world ‘rewards it with prizes and gifts’

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told his German counterpart Johann Wadephul at a Jerusalem meeting today that Hamas “is not interested” in reaching a ceasefire and hostage-release deal, and that the terror group’s hardened stance is being bolstered by global moves to recognize a Palestinian state.

Addressing the stalled negotiations for a truce, Sa’ar told Wadephul that Hamas “is not interested in reaching a deal,” according to a readout of the meeting from Sa’ar’s office.

“Hamas is holding the hostages, refusing to disarm, and is entrenched in its rejectionist stance toward a hostage deal because it sees the international community rewarding it with prizes and gifts,” Sa’ar’s office says in the readout, referring to the recent wave of Western nations announcing moves toward unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state.

The two ministers held a private discussion followed by an expanded meeting with representatives from both sides, according to the readout.

Sa’ar also emphasized Israel’s opposition to recognizing a Palestinian state, telling Wadephul that “We don’t call these areas ‘the West Bank,’ we call them ‘Judea and Samaria,'” referring to the Biblical term for the territory.

“We believe that Jews have the right to live in the heart of their historic homeland — including in Judea and Samaria,” Sa’ar told his counterpart, while also accusing the Palestinian Authority of inciting hatred against Israel through its education system and media activities, and of providing financial support to terrorists.

“If the PA were to gain control over the borders and airspace,” Sa’ar cautioned, “we would find ourselves flooded with Iranian weapons inside Israel. That will not happen.”

Sa’ar also referred to “illegal Palestinian construction in Area C,” saying that turning a blind eye to it is “hypocrisy.”

Palestinians living in towns and villages in Area C, which is under full Israeli civil and military control and makes up 60% of the West Bank, can rarely receive building permits. As a result, the construction they do in the area is often done illegally. Organizations behind the settlement movement reject these constructions, seeing them as part of an effort to take full control of the area.

A Palestinian state cannot be established “for the simple reason that Israel cannot compromise on its security,” Sa’ar concluded, according to his office.