The Qatari-United Nations agreement on the delivery of Qatari cash aid funds to the Gaza Strip, which was announced last week, is a positive though insufficient development, a source close to Hamas said on Saturday.
“Hamas is expecting more measures, such as the reopening of all the border crossings and allowing all imports and exports from and into the Gaza Strip,” the source said.
According to the source, the Egyptians are continuing their mediation efforts to reach a long-term truce between Israel and the Gaza-based factions and lift the “siege” imposed on the Hamas-ruled coastal enclave.
The source said that Hamas was not worried at this stage about the payments of salaries to its employees in the Gaza Strip. The Qatar-UN deal allows for the transfer of funds to more than 100,000 families, each of which will receive $100 per month.
The deal does not address the issue of the tens of thousands of civil servants employed by the Hamas administration, however.
Palestinian banks had refused to transfer the Qatari aid to the Gaza Strip, specifically to Hamas employees, for fear of being exposed to lawsuits on the grounds of supporting terrorism.
Palestinian sources said that Hamas has enough money to pay its civil servants until the end of the year.
Palestinian Authority officials in Ramallah refused to comment on the Qatar-UN deal.
The sources said that the Egyptians have exerted heavy pressure on Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad over the past week to refrain from carrying out terrorist attacks against Israel to avoid endangering the Qatar-UN agreement.
Despite the agreement, leaders of Hamas and other Palestinian factions continued over the weekend to make threats against Israel.
The threats were made during a rally organized by various Palestinian factions near the border with Israel to mark the 52nd anniversary of the burning of al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
“The Palestinian resistance is ready to respond to Israeli crimes,” Hamas said in a statement marking the anniversary.
Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya said that the “Sword of Jerusalem” battle with Israel has not ended, referring to last May’s 11-day war between Israel and Hamas. “The battle with the Israeli enemy is continuing,” he stated.
Another Hamas official, Suheil al-Hindi, said that his group was determined to pursue the fight against Israel until the “siege” on the Gaza Strip is lifted and Jerusalem and al-Aqsa Mosque are freed. “We won’t allow the occupying government to blackmail our people and we will continue to resist,” he said.
Jamil Muzher, a leader of the PLO’s Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) said that the Palestinians were not “intimidated by starvation.” He warned that Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip will not wait too long for the removal of all the sanctions imposed on the area.