Hamas tightening grip and blocking reconstruction in Gaza, says Board of Peace envoy

The diplomat tasked with implementing the US-backed Gaza peace plan says Hamas is consolidating its grip and preventing reconstruction in areas of the strip it still controls, as fears mount that the peace process is stalling. Nickolay Mladenov, who met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, said disarming the Palestinian militant group was proving particularly difficult – but did not rule out Hamas having a future political role if it does lay down its weapons. The comments by Mr Mladenov, the top envoy of the Board of Peace overseeing the ceasefire, come amid an increase in Israeli bombardment of the strip. “We have a ceasefire. It is holding. It is not perfect. It is far from perfect,” Mr Mladenov said during a press conference in Jerusalem. “Seven months since the ceasefire, the door to the future of Gaza is still closed.” He added: “In the areas that it still controls, Hamas is consolidating its grip on the population. It is taxing people in the street who have nothing left to give. It is blocking Palestinian workers and contractors approved by the Board of Peace from building.” Mr Mladenov said the plan was that Hamas “needs to step back form the governance of Gaza”. However, he did not dismiss the possibility of the group continuing if it disbands its military wing and “commits to peace”, despite Israeli officials saying it must have no future at all in Gaza. Under the ceasefire championed by US President Donald Trump, Israeli troops continue to occupy a large area of the strip that Palestinians say has been quietly expanded. An estimated 120 Palestinians have been killed in the five weeks since the Iran war was halted amid regular air strikes. Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov heads US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace for Gaza. EPA Info Israel has also blocked the entry of equipment needed to clear rubble, but Mr Mladenov said Hamas was also obstructing the path to peace. “You cannot build a future with armed groups running in the streets, hiding in tunnels and stockpiling weapons,” he said. Israeli media have been reporting in recent weeks that the military is preparing to resume the war in Gaza. This could involve an operation to occupy more land, on top of the more than half of the strip the military already controls. Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported this month that the US might give Israel permission to resume fighting in the strip. Mr Mladenov said there had been progress on living conditions in the strip, which was subjected to dire humanitarian conditions during the war by an Israeli blockade of the border. “Before last October around 1,300 trucks were entering Gaza each week and roughly 90 per cent of them were being diverted by armed actors. Today, that number of trucks is often over 4,000 a week and the diversion is around one per cent,” the envoy said. The UN has nonetheless been warning about new issues that are endangering the enclave. UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, warned on Wednesday about the spread of disease-carrying rodents, which are “heavily infesting” emergency shelters and tents, biting people and contaminating homes. “The current spread of rodents and infections is not merely a health issue, but a clear sign of Gaza’s vulnerability and near collapse of its health system,” said Akihiro Seita, the agency's director of health. Mr Mladenov said that trust between Palestinians and Israelis was “well below zero” but maintained that the mechanism of the peace plan could still bring about progress. “The architecture we’re designing is done in a way that nobody has to trust anyone. Everyone is asked to verify, and as one side delivers, the other side should deliver as well.”