According to Khalil al-Hayya, a high-ranking Hamas official, the group is prepared to join the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and form a unified government for Gaza and the West Bank. This proposal, made during an interview in Istanbul, highlights Hamas’s willingness to accept a fully sovereign Palestinian state within pre-1967 borders, in line with international resolutions. Al-Hayya emphasized that if these conditions are met, Hamas’s military wing would be dissolved, as other liberation movements have done upon achieving independence.
Despite previous statements rejecting any alternative to complete liberation of Palestine, Al-Hayya’s comments suggest a potential shift in Hamas’s stance. However, he did not clarify whether this implied an end to the conflict or an interim step towards Hamas’s ultimate goal of eliminating Israel.
Hamas’s proposal comes amidst a stalemate in ongoing ceasefire negotiations and the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The war, which began in October 2014, has left over 2,100 Palestinians and 67 Israelis dead, according to the United Nations.
Israel has yet to respond to Hamas’s proposal, but its previous stance suggests it may be unlikely to accept a scenario that involves the creation of a Palestinian state and the disarmament of Hamas.
The international community has generally supported a two-state solution, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has rejected it.
It remains to be seen whether Hamas’s apparent embrace of a two-state solution will lead to a breakthrough in peace negotiations or if it will simply be another chapter in the long-running conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
