Hamas has told Sky News that it is committed to every detail of the ceasefire agreement but says it faces “enormous difficulties” in recovering the remaining bodies of Israeli hostages.
Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesperson based in Gaza, said that recovering and identifying the bodies would require specialist equipment that no longer exists in the enclave and said that some of the hostages had been “vaporised” during Israeli military attacks.
He also said that the question of disarmament, which has been repeatedly highlighted by both American and Israeli politicians, was “complex and sensitive” with a need to avoid an “extremely dangerous security vacuum”.
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Qassem was interviewed by journalists working for Sky News. International journalists are barred by Israel from entering Gaza independently.
The ceasefire deal initiated by Donald Trump mandated that Hamas should return all of the hostages it was holding, both living and dead.
So far, all 20 living hostages have been returned to Israel, while the remains of nine hostages have been handed over. That leaves a further 19 dead hostages unaccounted for.
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Israel has alleged that Hamas is breaching the terms of the agreement by deliberately delaying the return of bodies.
Mr Qassem flatly denies this and says it is all but impossible for them to now reach the remains of captives with the equipment they have.
He said: “We need heavy machinery, cranes, and specialised equipment for identifying remains, none of which exist in Gaza. All our heavy equipment was completely destroyed, as were all forensic laboratories.
“Therefore, we need technical teams capable of identifying bodies and dealing with the immense rubble. The mediators understand that.”
He continued: “There are major difficulties in locating and reaching sites due to the destruction and the change in the geography of the areas. That means it all requires more time and effort. There is a great effort underway and Hamas is working to fully implement the agreement.
“We explained all this to the mediators from the outset, and they understood. We even heard from US President Trump that he acknowledged the difficulty of this issue, saying we showed a genuine intention to return the bodies.”
What has Hamas said on disarmament?
Trump has also been vocal about the need for disarmament, another stipulation in the agreement, even if it is vaguely expressed.
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Mr Qassem made it clear to our team that, in the minds of Hamas, the subject still requires much more debate.
“We emphasise that there must be no security vacuum, because a vacuum is extremely dangerous,” he said.
“There must be effort toward reforming administrative structures to prevent such a void.
“The issue of weapons is complex and sensitive, requiring national consensus and political approaches to solve this dilemma. We must avoid being trapped by the term ‘disarmament’ but instead find nationally agreed approaches to deal with the weapons issue.”
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He claimed prisoners returned by Israel showed signs of torture, claiming there were “descriptions and testimonies that are too gruesome to mention in the media” and demanded “immediate accountability”.
Israel has denied the mistreatment of prisoners, saying they are offered medical treatment while in detention.
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Hamas comments on execution videos
Qassem also alleged that Israel was stoking violence in Gaza by supporting armed militias, who he accused of “high treason – the most severe charge in Palestinian revolutionary law”.
Sky News recently reported on links between Israel and the Abu Shabab rebel group, which is based in Gaza but opposes Hamas.
Our team asked Qassem about images widely spread on social media that appeared to show people being executed on the street.
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Qassem claimed the clashes were a result of action taken by government security forces, and not Hamas itself, but said that some people had been “turned in” after accusations that they had colluded with Israel.
“The most important point we stress is that these chaotic incidents must be decisively contained. The security forces are carrying out their lawful duty to impose order and prevent anarchy, holding offenders accountable.”
