A senior Hamas official confirmed on Saturday that the movement does not want to "return to war" with Israel, which began following the attack it launched on October 7, 2023.

Bassem Naim, a member of the Hamas political bureau, told Agence France-Presse, “Returning to war is definitely not our wish, nor our decision.”

He warned that Israel's "non-commitment" to the ceasefire in Gaza put it in danger of collapse.

He said: “What we see of procrastination and lack of commitment in implementing the first phase (...) certainly puts this agreement at risk, and thus it may stop and collapse.”

Hamas confirmed that it is "still ready" to participate in the second phase of the ceasefire negotiations. Bassem Naim said: "We are still ready to go (to the negotiations). But the occupation is delaying the start of these negotiations."

The ceasefire agreement went into effect on January 19, more than 15 months after the outbreak of the devastating war.

It stipulates the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons, coinciding with the cessation of hostilities.