The Board of Peace's high representative for Gaza said Wednesday that Hamas could continue operating as a political movement if it agrees to lay down its weapons, signaling a possible framework for Gaza's postwar political future.
"We are asking the political leadership of those who govern Gaza now to step aside. This is required by the Security Council resolution in the 20-point plan," said Nickolay Mladenov during a press conference in Jerusalem, referring to the peace plan for the territory.
"We are not asking Hamas to disappear as a political movement. A political party that disavows armed activity can compete in national Palestinian elections. What is not negotiable, however, is that armed factions or militias... can exist alongside a transitional Palestinian authority," he said.
Israel has stepped up its attacks in Gaza in recent days, since the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, and many Palestinians fear a return of more airstrikes and full-scale war may be imminent.
Mladenov is a longtime U.N. diplomat and consultant who has also been a government minister in his home country, Bulgaria. Last year he was named high representative for Gaza for the President Donald Trump-led International Board of Peace designed to oversee post-war plans for the strip.
