TEL AVIV, August 2. /TASS/. French President Emmanuel Macron provided Hamas with a reason to reject the Gaza settlement agreement by equating hostages held by radicals in the enclave with Palestinian terrorists held in Israeli prisons, Dmitry Gendelman, an adviser to the Prime Minister's Office, said.
"Macron has once again chosen moral blindness over moral leadership. Any statement equating innocent civilians with war criminals is a direct obstacle to negotiations and a gift to terrorists," Gendelman wrote on his Telegram channel. According to him, the French leader "gave Hamas a reason to reject the proposals on the table," which "reinforces the blackmail" by the radicals.
On August 1, Hamas released a video allegedly featuring a young man who is Israeli hostage Evyatar David. After that, Macron called for "the release of all on both sides" during one of his speeches, the Ynet portal reported.
"When the French president says ‘free everyone’ and includes those who have bloodied the streets of our (Israel's - TASS) cities, he is effectively destroying the basis for any deal to free real hostages," the adviser emphasized. "Israel will continue to do everything possible to bring back its citizens, despite the moral failure of part of the international community," Gendelman pointed out, noting that "if the deal falls through in the coming days, the responsibility for this will lie not only with Hamas, but also with those who equate the victim with the executioner.".