From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, Sharren Miriam Haskel-Harpaz, has said that only the return of Israeli hostages by Hamas would end the conflict in Gaza.

He accused French President Emmanuel Macron and other European leaders of backing the delay in ending the conflict in Gaza and the ceasefire.

Responding to questions from journalists during a visit to Innov8 hub in Abuja, Haskel-Harpaz accused Hamas of carrying out fake news propaganda through the media in a media war against Israel.

She also said Hamas was doing so in order to put pressure on Israel to stop the war.

He said: “But we can’t. You asked when this war ends, it ends in one way and one way only because we don’t have any other option.

“When they swore to rape our little girls and burn our people alive, we cannot live beside an organisation and death cult like that. We have to go and eradicate this terrorist organisation to make sure that my children are safe back home.

“And so, this war can end in one way and one way only: when all of our hostages will be back home safely and when Hamas disarms itself. And it could have ended yesterday, six months ago, a year ago, just now.

“For a few weeks, we have been negotiating so delicately on a ceasefire that would end this war. We agreed to it. Any proposal in the last few months that the Americans, an American envoy, Witkoff put on table, Israel said yes, Hamas said no. Why don’t they want to end it, why don’t they want to cease fire? I will tell you why and I will tell you why those negotiations broke down. It is because of European leaders like Macron (President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron).”

The Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister further said every single week during the delicate negotiations, the European Union or Macron, was giving Hamas a reward for the continuation of the war, putting pressure only on Israel, stating that Israel doesn’t surrender.

“Then, they might impose an economic boycott; that if Israel doesn’t surrender, Macron will declare a Palestinian state. What do you think Hamas thinks of it? They say oh, that is great. The longer this war will go, the more Macron will reward us, the more the international community will reward us. So, what reason do they have to finish this war and disarm themselves? None. And that is why the negotiations failed. And when the negotiations failed and we didn’t reach a ceasefire, even though we said yes and we went quite a few steps towards Hamas’ demands. Unfortunately, we are left with one option and one only,” Haskel-Harpaz also said.  Speaking earlier, he expressed delight over the activities of Innov8 hub, saying that the work carried out at the knowledge incubation hub was remarkable.

She stated that the joint venture between Israel and Nigeria in giving opportunity to brilliant minds in Nigeria with ideas and dreams that can advance humanity in so many different fields such as healthcare, energy, recycling and fashion was absolutely remarkable.

In his remarks, the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), Sonny Echono, said TETFUND was particularly proud of its partnership with the Embassy of Israel in Nigeria and other partners, including Innov8.

“We are trying to push the agenda, promoting research as the foundation for discoveries, for innovation, for entrepreneurship and the transformation of our national economy,” Echono said.

The post Gaza: Israeli deputy foreign minister opens up on crisis appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.

• Says only safe return of Israeli hostages will end war against Hamas
• Blames Macron, other European leaders of delaying end to war, ceasefire in Gaza

By Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja

The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, Sharren Miriam Haskel-Harpaz, has said that only the return of Israeli hostages by Hamas will end the conflict in Gaza.

This was even as Haskel-Harpaz accused French President Emmanuel Macron and other European leaders of backing the delay in ending the conflict in Gaza and the ceasefire.

Responding to questions from journalists during a visit to Innov8 Hub in Abuja, Haskel-Harpaz accused Hamas of carrying out fake news propaganda through the media in a media war against Israel.

She also said Hamas was doing so in order to put pressure on Israel to stop the war.

Haskel-Harpaz said: “But we can’t. You asked when this war ends; it ends in one way and one way only because we don’t have any other option.

“When they swore to rape our little girls, to burn our people alive, in any case they would have, we cannot live beside an organisation and death cult like that. We have to go and eradicate this terrorist organisation to make sure that my children are safe back home.

“And so, this war can end in one way and one way only: when all of our hostages will be back home safely and when Hamas disarms itself. And it could have ended yesterday, six months ago, a year ago, just now.

“For a few weeks, we have been negotiating so delicately on a ceasefire that would end this war. We agreed to it. Any proposal in the last few months that the Americans, an American envoy, Witkoff, put on the table, Israel said yes, Hamas said no. Why don’t they want to end it, why don’t they want to cease fire? I will tell you why, and I will tell you why those negotiations broke down: because of European leaders like Macron (President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron).”

The Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister further said every single week during the delicate negotiations, the European Union or Macron was giving Hamas a reward for the continuation of the war, putting pressure only on Israel, stating that if Israel doesn’t surrender.

“Then they might impose an economic boycott; if Israel doesn’t surrender, then Macron will declare a Palestinian state. What do you think Hamas thinks of it? They say, oh, that is great. The longer this war will go, the more Macron will reward us, the more the international community will reward us. So, what reason do they have to finish this war and disarm themselves? None! And that is why the negotiations failed. And when the negotiations failed and we didn’t reach a ceasefire, even though we said yes and we went quite a few steps towards Hamas’ demands. Unfortunately, we are left with one option and one only,” Haskel-Harpaz also said.

Speaking earlier, Haskel-Harpaz expressed delight over the activities of Innov8 Hub, saying that the work carried out at the knowledge incubation hub was remarkable.

She stated that the joint venture between Israel and Nigeria in giving opportunity to brilliant minds in Nigeria with ideas and dreams that can advance humanity in so many different fields such as healthcare, energy, recycling, and fashion was absolutely remarkable.

In his remarks, the Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), Sonny Echono, said TETFUND was particularly proud of its partnership with the Embassy of Israel in Nigeria and other partners, including Innov8.

“We are trying to push the agenda, promoting research as the foundation for discoveries, for innovation, for entrepreneurship, and the transformation of our national economy,” Echono said.

The post Gaza: Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister opens up on crisis appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.