Hamas Militant Group Ready To "Save" Weapons For Palestine's Independence

JAKARTA - Palestinian militant groups are ready to "store" their weapons in order to avoid further escalation and lead to the formation of the Palestinian State.

A senior Hamas official said his group was ready to discuss its weapons "freezing or storage" as part of a ceasefire with Israel, offering a possible formula to resolve one of the most complicated issues in the agreement brokered by the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey.

Bassem Naim, a member of the political bureau of Hamas decision-making, spoke as both sides prepared to enter a more complicated phase of the two agreements.

"We are open to a comprehensive approach to avoiding further escalation or to avoid further clashes or explosions," Naim told The Associated Press in Qatar's capital, Doha, where most of the group's leaders are located, reported by The Times of Israel (8/12).

Naim further said Hamas maintained a "right to fight" but said the group was ready to lay down its arms as part of a process aimed at leading to the formation of a Palestinian state.

Naim only provided a few details about how this could work, but suggested a long-term ceasefire of five or 10 years so that discussions could be held.

"This time must be used seriously and comprehensively," he said, adding Hamas was "very open" about what to do with its weapons.

"We can discuss freezing, storage, or stopping the use of weapons, with Palestinian guarantees, not to use them at all during this ceasefire or ceasefire," he said.

It is unclear whether the offer will meet Israel's demands for full weapons removal.

Earlier, the head of Hamas negotiator and leader of the group in Gaza Khalil Al-Hayya on Saturday said his group was ready to hand over its weapons in the Gaza Strip to Palestinian authorities who ruled the region on condition that the Israeli army's occupation ended.

"Our weapon is linked to the occupation and aggression," Hamas chief negotiator and Hamas leader in Gaza, Khalil Al-Hayya, said in a statement, adding: "If the occupation ends, this armament will be under state authority," as reported by Arab News from AFP.

When asked by AFP, Hayya said she meant a sovereign and independent Palestinian state.

"We accept the deployment of UN troops as separators, tasked with monitoring the border and ensuring compliance with the ceasefire in Gaza," Hayya said, signaling his group's rejection of the deployment of international troops in the Gaza Strip whose mission is to lay off arms.