Wed Mar 19 10:14:51 UTC 2025: ## Hamas Rejects New Agreements, Demands Israel Adhere to Existing Ceasefire
**Cairo, March 19, 2025** – Hamas has stated it remains open to negotiations but rejects the need for new agreements, following Israel’s heaviest bombardment of Gaza since a January 2025 ceasefire. A Hamas official, Taher al-Nunu, speaking from Cairo, insisted that Israel must instead fully implement the existing ceasefire agreement, which includes a second phase of negotiations that was supposed to begin in early March.
This second phase was to involve an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a more permanent ceasefire. Mr. Nunu accused Israel of violating the existing agreement, calling for urgent international action to stop the ongoing aggression. He emphasized that Hamas has no preconditions for continued talks, only demanding an immediate halt to the Israeli offensive and the commencement of the second phase of the agreement.
Israel’s intensified air strikes on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, resulted in over 400 deaths in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, making it one of the deadliest days of the conflict. Further strikes on Wednesday resulted in at least 13 additional deaths. Israel launched the strikes in an attempt to pressure Hamas into releasing hostages. The current ceasefire was brokered by Qatar, the United States, and Egypt, over 15 months after Hamas’s initial attack on Israel in October 2023.
First Piper 