Palestine's Hamas, Islamic Jihad Say Premature To Discuss Mediators For Talks With Israel

Palestine's Hamas, Islamic Jihad Say Premature to Discuss Mediators for Talks With Israel

It is premature to discuss the mediation of talks with Israel at this point, the representatives of Palestine's Hamas movement and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) told Sputnik on Tuesday amid an escalation in the Gaza Strip

GAZA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th November, 2019) It is premature to discuss the mediation of talks with Israel at this point, the representatives of Palestine's Hamas movement and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) told Sputnik on Tuesday amid an escalation in the Gaza Strip.

Escalation peaked on the Israeli-Palestinian border earlier in the day as the Israel Defense Forces eliminated two militants of the PIJ group in Gaza. Israel believes that the PIJ is responsible for hundreds of terrorist attacks against its civilians and military and was plotting a new attack soon. Palestine claimed that the Israeli strikes killed two people, one of them PIJ commander Baha Abu al-Ata.

"The priority at the moment is to respond to Israeli's actions; the discussion of mediation or intervention aimed at halting the response of the resistance forces is unacceptable," Barim said.

The spokesperson for the Hamas movement, too, said that it was premature to discuss the mediation of talks with Israel at this point, but specified what would be expected from a prospective mediator.

"The mediator must pressure the Israeli government to stop the aggression in Gaza Strip," Hazem Qasem told Sputnik.

The escalation occurs on the backdrop of a complicated domestic political landscape in Israel, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu puts together a caretaker cabinet, while his key rival, Benny Gantz, who came first at the election in September, struggles to form a coalition government. A third snap election is likely if he fails.