Hamas ready to lay down heavy weapons

Palestinian-American mediator Bishara Bahbah, head of the Arab Americans for Peace Committee and one of the go-betweens in Gaza, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Hamas has shown “openness and willingness to relinquish its heavy weapons.”

Bahbah said Israel is “deliberately delaying” the implementation of the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, adding that “Washington will not permit this agreement to fail, regardless of Israeli objections.”

Bahbah led a group of Arab-Americans who supported Donald Trump during his 2024 presidential campaign. According to CNN sources, he had previously established an informal channel of communication with Hamas, which allowed the United States to secure the release of Edan Alexander, an Israeli soldier with American citizenship, from the Gaza Strip. Negotiations between the American side and Hamas later continued in the Qatari capital of Doha.