Hamas leader Bassim Naeem emphasized that the military aggression taking place in the Gaza Strip is not a conflict between Hamas and Israel but rather a war between Israel and the Palestinian people that has been ongoing for decades.
Naeem said in a press conference held by Hamas in Beirut on Wednesday evening “Foreigners will be released; they are guests of the Movement but the field and security conditions must be met to ensure their safety.” He affirmed “Our position regarding the prisoners was clear and we expressed our readiness to release the foreigners once the conditions are met” calling on the international community and the United Nations not to succumb to the will of the occupation.
He added “What is required is practical and immediate action to lift the siege on Gaza especially in the northern area. We call on the Arab and Islamic summits to make a decision that compels the enemy to open the crossings.” The Hamas leader continued “The occupation is intensifying its bombardment of hospitals in Gaza and its health centers causing a catastrophe. It targeted 120 health institutions in the Strip taking many of them out of service” noting that the remaining hospitals are operating on secondary power generators.
He further stated “49% of the victims in the recent Israeli bombing were in the southern area of the Gaza Strip and 2% of Gaza’s population has become either martyrs wounded or missing.”
Meanwhile Osama Hamdan a leader in Hamas affirmed that the United States should stop considering the illusion of governing Gaza after the war stating that “victory will be for the resistance and the Palestinian people.” He also held the US administration fully responsible for the Israeli massacres in the Gaza Strip due to the green light it has given to the occupation.
Hamdan said that “the resistance and the al-Qassam Brigades are inflicting heavy losses on the enemy’s ranks around the clock.”
Hamdan pointed out that the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip killed a colonel from the Shaldag unit on Wednesday confirming that the losses inflicted by the resistance on the enemy are much greater than what is announced.
He called on international organizations to send delegations to Gaza to verify that no Hamas leaders are present in any of Gaza hospitals adding “What is required is an immediate cessation of aggression against our people.”
In his message to Israel the Hamas leader clarified “We tell Netanyahu that the resistance will force you to pay the price for the release of your soldiers.”
He also held UNRWA and its administration responsible for the “humanitarian catastrophe” in the beleaguered enclave especially for the residents of Gaza and its northern areas which complied with the Israeli dictates from the very beginning fled their positions and abandoned their responsibility.
Hamdan emphasized “We say to the civilized world how long will you remain silent about the collective punishment imposed by the Zionist enemy on the entire population (of Gaza)? Isn’t this a crime against humanity? Isn’t this a genocide and ethnic cleansing in front of your eyes and ears?”
He drew the attention to the fact that “since the beginning of the aggression Israel has deliberately cut off water supplies to the entire Gaza Strip and in recent days it has targeted and destroyed the remaining water tanks especially in Gaza City and the northern governorate.”
Hamdan charged that depriving the Gaza population of water constitutes a crime against humanity and a policy of collective punishment that rises to the level of genocide reflecting the savagery and brutality of Israel which promotes itself to the world as an oasis of democracy and peace.
He warned of the continuation of this catastrophic situation in Gaza where potable water has become more than 90% scarce forcing citizens to use contaminated water at the very least.
In a message to the Arab and Islamic masses and the free people of the world Hamdan stated “This battle is your battle and the occupation is the enemy of humanity our enemy and your enemy. So continue your struggle until the new Nazis stop their massacres and until we protect humanity from these evil Nazis.”
Hamdan also extended greetings to all peoples in different continents of the world who continue to gather in the hundreds of thousands rejecting aggression and acts of genocide and “showing solidarity with our people and our cause.”
