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Hamas declares end to ceasefire with Israel
This is the endBeautiful friend The end My only friend, the end  (AKI) - The Islamist Hamas movement declared on Thursday evening an end to a ceasefire with Israel in the Gaza Strip - one day before the truce was due to expire. The announcement was made soon after heavy clashes took place in Gaza between Palestinian militants and the Israeli Army. "The calm, which was reached with Egyptian sponsorship on 19 June and expires on 19 December, is finished because the enemy did not abide by its obligations," said Hamas official Ayman Taha.The Egyptian-mediated truce had been scheduled to end on Friday. "The truce with Israel is finished. Today is the last day of it and there is no possibility of it being renewed," said Hamas MP Mushir al-Masri, quoted by a website affiliated with Hamas. The intense tit-for-tat exchanges of fire between Israel and Gaza militants began on Monday with the assassination of one of the leaders of the al-Quds Brigades, armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group, allegedly by Israeli undercover forces in the West Bank. In a separate incident, Israeli daily Maariv claims that assassinating Hamas leaders is an option being explored as Israeli forces prepare for the end of the ceasefire. According to the daily, unnamed Arab leaders have given Israel a go-ahead to assassinate Hamas leaders in case the group refuses to renew the truce. The list includes deposed Prime Minister in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh, deposed Minister of the Interior Said Siyam, and deposed Minister of Foreign Affairs Mahmoud Az-Zahhar, as well as Ahmad al-Jabary the head of the al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing. The list also features Gaza MP and leader of the Popular Committee against the Siege in Gaza, Jamal Al-Khudari. Posted by: Fred 2008-12-19 |
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