The statements made by Fatah officials on a ceasefire agreement between Hamas and the Israeli occupation that Hamas had already denied are part of a policy aimed to distract Palestinian public opinion, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qasem said.

“Such remarks are a failed attempt by the Fatah leadership to divert the attention of the Palestinian street from evading the elections by Fatah,” Qasem added in a press release.

Qasem pointed out that the comments made by Palestinian Authority officials on a “nonexistent topic” reflected how the PA’s rhetoric had failed to justify its non-national approach based on security coordination with the Israeli occupation.

These remarks were made to cover up the national “scandal” of the continuous PA’s sanctions on Gaza and its decision to cut stipends paid to families of Palestinian martyrs and detainees in Israeli prisons, Qasem concluded.