A Hamas leader evaluates the war after a year: We stopped Israel’s projects to integrate into the region policy

Member of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), Bassem Naeem, said that the Battle of Al-Aqsa Flood was not in the name of a political party or resistance movement, and not in the name of Gaza or lifting the siege, but rather a battle in the name of the Palestinian people in order to defend their inalienable rights and achieve their independence and self-determination.

Naim added – in an exclusive interview with Tel Aviv Tribune Net – that over the course of 76 years, not a month or year has been without a massacre or crime committed by Israel, not only against the Palestinians, but also against Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

He also stressed that after a year of war, the resistance thwarted plans to integrate the Israeli entity into the region, normalize relations, and re-engineer the region in a way that serves this entity and its continuity and control over the region and its capabilities, through the Abrahamic Accords.

On the one-year anniversary of the start of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, a member of Hamas’s political bureau pointed out that what happened in the Al-Aqsa flood did not result from a moment of anger or momentary despair, as we have “hundreds of kilometers of tunnels that were not… “It will be prepared within a week or two,” “This is 20 years of military manufacturing preparation and the preparation of the Mujahideen and the resistance.”

In his interview, Naim also touched on the current escalation between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, and said that the multiplicity of fronts reveals the weakness of the Israeli occupation strategy, and shows the size of the room for maneuver on the human and geographical levels, qualitatively and quantitatively, and this is not in its favor and will serve the comprehensive battle in the interest of the Palestinian people.

And the details of the dialogue..

• After a year of war.. What gains did the resistance achieve from Operation Al-Aqsa Flood?

Anyone who looks at the past year in general will see two scenes:

1. First scene: It is the scene of the Palestinian will to defend its rights, and it is the scene of heroism, patience, steadfastness, clinging to the land and rights, and the steadfastness presented by our people.
2. Scene two: It is “the scene of pain that resulted from this blatant, barbaric, brutal Israeli aggression against our people, and unfortunately with direct international participation led by the United States of America and the major powers on the European continent.”

With these two scenes, it can be said that the Hamas movement did not enter the battle as a specific entity or political party, but it was a battle in the name of the Palestinian people in order to defend their rights, and the movement’s leadership called it the “Al-Aqsa Flood,” meaning that it was not a battle for Gaza nor for breaking the siege. Rather, it is a battle for Jerusalem and the holy sites, for land and identity, and for inalienable rights, freedom, independence, self-determination and return.

Based on this, it can be said that the achievements achieved by the resistance in this battle are as follows:

1. Months before the Al-Aqsa flood battle, the Palestinian issue was almost forgotten, and had no mention at the table of the regional and international communities.
2. The failure of plans to integrate the Israeli entity into the region, normalize relations, and re-engineer the region in a way that serves this entity and its continuity and control over the region and its capabilities, through the Abrahamic Accords.
3. The Palestinian issue was reimposed on the table, and everyone realized that no one could bypass the Palestinian people, or go to any other plans without resolving the Palestinian issue.
4. On the 7th of October, Israel received a powerful blow that shook the pillars on which this entity stood. Operation Al-Aqsa Flood proved that this army was no longer what was described as invincible, and with very limited capabilities, it became clear from the Mujahid youth that it could be defeated, paralyzed, and weakened in its ability to respond. For hours and days.
5. Israel is no longer that safe fortress for all Jews around the world, and is no longer able to protect those inside the entity, and there are tens of thousands of Jews who have fled their homes and are unable to return to them yet. Certainly, those who are unable to protect their citizens within the entity will not be able to bring in more.
6. The Zionist narrative, which was accepted for decades and is the most popular in the international community, is no longer so today, even among many groups who were historically affiliated with the entity in the West, after it became clear to them that this narrative is based on lies, deception, and deception.
7. This was reflected in the form of deep cracks in the narrative and media coverage of many official international media institutions, and what remained of it, unfortunately, proved to be merely a tool and a trumpet for reproducing the Zionist narrative. It was no longer able to defend these lies, and was then forced to retreat in the face of pressure. New media.
8. On the legal level, Israel has been committing massacres for more than 75 years, and from the first Nakba until the Al-Aqsa flood, no one held it accountable, and it enjoyed immunity. Today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a number of his ministers are being pursued in the International Criminal Court as war criminals, and a court confirmed International Justice – the highest legal platform in the international community – stated that what Israel is doing amounts to genocide.
9. Our Palestinian people regained confidence in themselves and in their ability to act, a confidence that extended to the entire region, especially the young generation, which almost reached the lowest levels of despair and frustration after the failure of the Arab Spring waves.

• But on the other hand, is the size of these gains proportional to the countless losses the Palestinian people have paid?

This question has been repeated since the first weeks of this glorious battle, but:

• Firstly- Over the course of 76 years, not a month or a year has been without a massacre or crime committed by Israel, not only against the Palestinians, but also in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.
• secondly- Israel did not present any vision or any practical step proving that it desires coexistence or peace with the Palestinian people.
• Third- In the years 2000 and 2023 alone, about 20,000 Palestinians were killed, thousands of homes were destroyed, tens of thousands of dunams were confiscated, the sanctities in Al-Aqsa Mosque were violated, and the Judaization of the city of Jerusalem was imposed.

On the other hand, the Palestinian people studied history well, and realized that there is no people who achieved their freedom and independence around the world except through the path of armed resistance and great sacrifices, especially after the disastrous political path.

Today we are talking about 3 million people killed in Vietnam in the war with America, and 4 million wounded. We are talking about Algeria, which only reached the minimum during the revolution period of one and a half million dead, but the Algerians talk about about 15 million during the entire period of occupation, and the same thing is repeated in South Africa and other countries.

There is no country in the world that has been liberated through political negotiations. This colonialism is, by its nature, brutal and bloody, and will not leave our land except with the same force and brutality.

• Does this mean that the resistance will repeat the battle again if it finds a way to do so?

Certainly, we have no other choice but to continue the resistance and be prepared to sacrifice and pay the price, because we firmly believe that in the end we will achieve our freedom and rights.

What happened in the Al-Aqsa flood is not a process resulting from a moment of anger or a moment of despair. Today, we are talking about hundreds of kilometers of tunnels that were not prepared within a week, two weeks, or two months before the Al-Aqsa flood as a result of pressure and siege. These are 20 years old of military industrialization and preparation. Mujahideen and resistance.

The Battle of the Flood was preceded by several years of sacrifices, and came within a clear and specific vision based on the fact that at a certain moment there will be a confrontation, and this confrontation will be a decisive one. Therefore, this path is not spontaneous and emotional, but rather a path based on a clear vision and a specific, extended strategy, which is preparation and preparation for dozens of… The years.

• Does this mean that the resistance strategy is based on a policy of reaction only with regard to Israeli aggression?

Although the flood operation appears in the context of the larger historical context to be a reaction, it was an initiated action even if it appeared as a reaction, because the existence of the occupation is the action, the siege on Gaza is the action, and the Judaization of Jerusalem and the desecration of the sanctities is the action, and all of our reactions are legitimate for our Palestinian people in Self defense framework.

As for the details, the movement does not act solely with a reactionary approach, and just as it “surprised the enemy on October 7, it will continue to do so again in new arenas and in different ways, because the basis for this is for this enemy to remain under constant pressure, and to remain There is a state of exhaustion at all political, security and military levels.

Therefore, Hamas is working to get all fronts inside and outside Palestine involved in order for this occupation to remain under pressure and attrition. Although it has achieved some achievements with a strike here or there, and the assassination of a leader here or there, they all remain short-term tactical achievements that will not enable it to achieve its goals. Controlling the region or integrating into it only builds more of these walls with more blood and body parts.

• What is Hamas’ position on the current escalation in southern Lebanon?

The escalation that the occupation began against Hezbollah reveals its intentions, and the multiplicity of arenas and fronts open against the occupation serves the overall project and not one party.

Therefore, the multiplicity of fronts reveals the weakness of this occupation’s strategy, and shows the size of the room for maneuver on the human and geographical levels, qualitatively and quantitatively. This is certainly not in its favor and will serve the overall battle in the interest of the Palestinian people.

When Israel entered the battle of Gaza, it came with about 350,000 to 400,000 soldiers, and a large portion of them were withdrawn from the economy, universities, hospitals, banks, and companies. When the occupation army decided to go to the north to escalate, it was unable to do so at the height of the battle in the Gaza Strip, even though the decision to escalate had been in place for a long time. Early.

• But many messages referred to in the Iranian President’s recent speech at the United Nations indicate a truce on the way with the United States?

1. The battle is Palestinian and not anyone’s battle. There may be parties that support or assist, whether in the Arab or Islamic region or from others, and in various forms in terms of military, logistical, financial and political aspects, but in the end this battle is Palestinian and the decision is Palestinian.
2. The decision to battle was not made depending on the position of any party, although support and assistance were extremely important and welcome.
3. According to my follow-up of the file of American-Iranian relations, I believe that some words here or there cannot address the deep, strategic, fundamental and structural rift between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States, because one of the elements of the identity of this republic after the revolution is hostility to America, and any dialogue involves a kind of gentleness. Or mitigation is a momentary tactical dialogue and does not indicate a change in strategies.

• Regarding the negotiations file, is Hamas considering giving up a little on its conditions in order to reach a ceasefire that has been ongoing for a year?

What we demand is the minimum, and what we demand is the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Gaza Strip because we cannot accept the reoccupation of the Strip after “October 7th.” What we demand is the opening of the crossings and reconstruction, and what we demand is the release of our prisoners who They are in the thousands, and some of them today have spent more than 40 years in occupation prisons.

These demands constitute a minimum, and it is difficult for any negotiator to give up on them. However, the movement has always shown flexibility and positivity at every negotiating station, and in the tactical framework, with the aim of stopping this bleeding and giving the people an opportunity to build themselves.

The Hamas movement announced that there is no more room for concessions, and that it is committed to the July 2 agreement, and is ready to implement it immediately, but the problem was not what the movement accepts, but rather lies in the person of Netanyahu, who does not want to reach any agreement.