SOFTENS STAND ON ISRAEL
Meshaal rejects the idea of a permanent peace deal with Israel but has said that Hamas, which in the 1990s and 2000s sent suicide bombers into Israel, could accept a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem as a temporary solution in return for a long-term ceasefire.
The Oct 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas-led militants from Gaza, which killed 1,200 people and led to the kidnapping of over 250 people, according to Israeli tallies, made the militant group’s priorities clear.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes and an invasion of Gaza that have killed over 39,000 Palestinians, pursuing a campaign to eradicate Hamas that has reduced much of the densely populated coastal enclave to rubble.
Meshaal said the Oct 7 Hamas attack returned the Palestinian cause to the centre of the world agenda.
He urged Arabs and Muslims to join the battle against Israel and said Palestinians alone would decide who runs Gaza after the current war ends, in defiance of Israel and the United States who want to exclude Hamas from post-war governance.
Discussion about this post