Hamas: Israel seeking to 'bring situation back to square one'

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan has said in a televised statement that Israel "is pushing to return things to square one" with requests to extend the first phase of the ceasefire agreement.

Hamdan added that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "fully responsible" for the consequences of the collapse of the deal.

“We condemn the cheap blackmail that Netanyahu and his extremist government are committing against our people by using humanitarian aid as a pressure card in the negotiations,” Hamdan said.

Hamdan said that Hamas is fully "committed to the agreement", adding that Hamas has honoured its own commitments to the deal in a "precise and timely manner", while Israel has committed multiple violations since the ceasefire was implemented.