West Asia

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has slammed the so-called Board of Peace for distorting the reality of Gaza’s worsening humanitarian crisis by downplaying Israel’s continued obstruction of aid deliveries and its failure to implement the US-backed ceasefire roadmap. In a statement on Monday, responding to the board’s remarks on the deadly floods in Gaza, Hamas rejected attempts to hold the Palestinian resistance responsible for delays in implementing the roadmap, stressing that it and other Palestinian factions had already accepted the agreed terms.

Earlier Monday, the Board of Peace criticized Israel for delaying the entry of essential supplies, acknowledging that the restrictions have aggravated the humanitarian catastrophe. However, it also called on Hamas to fulfill its commitments, including disarming and transferring governing authority in Gaza. Hamas welcomed the board’s acknowledgment of Israeli obstruction but said its statement presented an incomplete and distorted picture by failing to address Israel’s broader responsibility for undermining the implementation of US President Donald Trump’s plan.

The movement recalled an August 3 statement by mediators Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, which warned that repeated Israeli violations were jeopardizing the implementation of the plan’s second phase. Hamas stated that using life-saving humanitarian assistance as political leverage constitutes a violation of humanitarian and legal obligations, noting that shelter supplies remain stranded outside Gaza while displaced Palestinians are left exposed to devastating floods and freezing weather.

“Children dying under the sand and in rainwater are not parties to the negotiations,” the movement said, stressing that the lives of Palestinian civilians must not be held hostage to Israel’s political and military objectives. The humanitarian crisis has further deteriorated following a powerful storm that struck Gaza on Friday evening, flooding more than 70,000 tents and causing dozens of walls damaged during Israel’s genocidal war to collapse, according to the Government Media Office.

Two women and three children were killed late Sunday after a sand embankment collapsed onto tents sheltering displaced Palestinians in Deir al-Balah, Gaza’s Civil Defense reported. Hamas called on the Board of Peace to explain its failure to take effective action to contain the unfolding humanitarian disaster and compel Israel to honor its commitments under the first phase of the agreement. It demanded the immediate and unconditional opening of crossings to allow the entry of humanitarian aid, shelter materials, and reconstruction supplies.

The movement also called for a clear timetable and an effective monitoring mechanism to ensure implementation of the roadmap, including Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and the arrangements necessary for the Palestinian committee tasked with administering the territory to begin its work. It further urged the board to issue a public report detailing which commitments had been fulfilled, which remained outstanding and who was responsible for the delays.

Reaffirming its readiness to implement the agreed terms, Hamas rejected any attempt to impose new conditions that would change the agreed sequence of obligations, delay Israel’s withdrawal or prolong the suffering of Palestinian civilians.