Hamas wary of international push for PA return to Gaza
Hamas is concerned that Egypt’s proposal facilitating the Palestinian Authority’s return to the Gaza Strip will be at the expense of the Islamist group.
The Israeli aggression continues in Gaza, after the failure of the Cairo talks and Israel's failure on Aug. 19 to eliminate Mohammed Deif, the leader of Hamas' military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. Then, at dawn on Aug. 21, Israel assassinated three al-Qassam leaders in Rafah, while Hamas threatened to escalate the confrontation with Israel.
Hamas is locked in the battle of Gaza and paying a heavy price. However, it looks like the Palestinian Authority (PA) is the one who will reap the fruits of this confrontation politically — amid regional and international agreements — to return to Gaza again, according to what was in the Egyptian initiative for a cease-fire.
In a previous article, Al-Monitor reported the emergence of signs that the PA might return to Gaza, with the arrival of the deputy prime minister of the consensus government, Ziad Abu Amr, [to Gaza] on Aug. 16. During the visit, he met with ministry representatives, all of whom were from Hamas.
A Hamas official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Al-Monitor, "[Hamas] sees that the PA's return to Gaza is a natural thing, immediately after the formation of the consensus government in early June. However, Israel and the international community are targeting the way in which the PA returns to crack down on Hamas, and change the political environment in the Strip. [They intend to] gradually reduce the influence of the movement, paving the way for the entrenchment of a security environment that puts Israel at ease, as is the case in the West Bank. [This will be done] through draining the sources of the resistance and preventing the flow of funds to it."
