GAZA, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on Sunday called on mediators and guarantors to press Israel to approve the roadmap for the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
The call was made in a statement issued following a meeting in Cairo between a Hamas delegation, led by Khalil al-Hayya, head of the movement's political bureau, and representatives of the mediators and guarantors of the ceasefire agreement.
The delegation urged the mediators and the U.S.-led "Board of Peace" to press Israel to implement all its commitments under the first phase of the agreement, halt killings and ground incursions, and approve the roadmap for the second phase of the agreement, the statement read.
Hamas also said it had accepted the roadmap, citing its aim to secure a permanent ceasefire, full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, sustained humanitarian aid, and the start of work by the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, it said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier this month that Israel rejected the U.S.-backed roadmap and would not withdraw its forces from Gaza until Hamas was fully disarmed.
The "Board of Peace" published a 15-point roadmap on July 31 for implementing the next phase of the Gaza agreement. It includes an end to military operations, the transfer of civilian administration to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, the decommissioning of heavy weapons, weapons stockpiles, military production facilities and tunnels, alongside arrangements for an Israeli withdrawal. ■
