This came during a press conference by Hamas leader Fawzi Barhoum, broadcast on Al-Aqsa TV, in response to an Israeli attack on a Hamas leadership residence in Doha on Tuesday. The attack resulted in the survival of the negotiating delegation, but the death of the delegation's head, Khalil al-Hayya's son, his office director, Jihad Labad, three aides, and a Qatari security officer.
At the press conference, Barhoum said, "This crime was not merely an assassination attempt on the delegation, but rather a bombing and assassination of the entire negotiation process, and a deliberate targeting of the role of the mediating brothers in Qatar and Egypt."
He explained that the attack is "a blatant confirmation by (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and his criminal gang of their refusal to reach any agreement and their insistence on thwarting all regional and international efforts aimed at halting the genocide and starvation and ending the war against our people in Gaza."
Barhoum stressed that the attack "clearly proves that Netanyahu and his extremist government bear sole responsibility for the failure and disruption of all previous negotiations."
He stressed that the US administration is "a full partner in this crime, bearing political and moral responsibility by providing cover and ongoing support for the occupation's aggression and ongoing crimes against our people."
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Barhoum reiterated that this heinous crime and other crimes "will not succeed in changing our firm positions and clear demands for an end to the aggression against our people, a complete withdrawal of the occupation army from the Gaza Strip, a genuine prisoner exchange, relief for our people, and reconstruction."
On Tuesday, the Israeli occupation army announced that it had launched an airstrike on the Hamas leadership in Doha, sparking widespread regional and international condemnation and calls for a collective response to deter Israel. Qatar condemned the Israeli attack, describing it as "state terrorism," affirming that it reserved the right to respond to this aggression, which resulted in the death of a member of the internal security forces.
Hamas announced that its negotiating delegation, led by its head in Gaza, Khalil al-Hayya, survived an assassination attempt. The assassination attempt killed his office director, Jihad Labad, his son, Humam al-Hayya, and three bodyguards: Abdullah Abdul Wahid, Moamen Hassouna, and Ahmed al-Mamluk.
The attack on Qatar came despite its mediation role, alongside Egypt and with US participation, in indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel aimed at reaching a prisoner exchange agreement and a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
This attack reflects Israel's expansion of its regional aggression. Last June, it launched an attack on Iran, and for nearly two years, it has been committing genocide in Gaza and attacks in the occupied West Bank, while also conducting airstrikes on Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen.
