Nobel Peace Prize-winning human rights activist Tawakkol Karman has commented on Hamas’s approval of the US-Qatari-Egyptian initiative to end the war in Gaza.
She explained that the delay in Hamas’s approval, despite the initiative meeting all of Hamas's conditions, was due to an Iranian request aimed at preserving the reputation of Hassan Nasrallah and his party.
On her official Facebook page, Karman stated, "Hamas has agreed to the US-Qatari-Egyptian initiative, which had previously raised several questions and reservations from Hamas." She added, "The truth is that this initiative meets all of Hamas's demands, including the withdrawal of occupying forces, the return of Gaza residents to all areas, the full flow of aid with 650 trucks per day, a permanent cessation of fire starting in six weeks, and ultimately the reconstruction of Gaza."
Karman continued, "The reciprocal measure that the Palestinian resistance will take is the release of Israeli prisoners in exchange for multiples of Palestinian prisoners." She further remarked, "Israel would not have agreed to this initiative if it were not for Gaza’s steadfastness and the occupation army’s entanglement in its own quagmire."
Karman attributed the delay in Hamas's approval to an Iaranian desire to allow Hezbollah to carry out actions that, while not violating Israel's rules of engagement, would maintain the perception of a strong resistance. These actions included setting fire to forests and launching limited-effect rocket attacks.
In a sarcastic tone, Karman remarked, "The purpose of the delay was to protect the reputation of Hassan Nasrallah and his party. It is deemed unacceptable for the so-called 'lion of the resistance axis' (a sarcastic reference to the leader of Hezbollah) to be exposed as nothing more than a mere paper lion." She noted that the delay was based on an Iranian request that was responded to out of necessity.