Ismail Haniyeh warns hostages held in Gaza face same risk of ‘death and destruction’ from Israeli attack on territory as Palestinian residents
The Hamas political leader accused Israel of carrying out “massacres” in the besieged Gaza Strip to cover up its own “defeats” and warned that the hundreds of Israeli and foreign hostages held captive in Gaza face the same risk of “death and destruction” the Israeli assault on the territory as Palestinian residents.
Israel “commits barbaric massacres against unarmed civilians,” Ismail Haniyeh said in a speech broadcast Wednesday.
“His wickedness will not save them from a resounding defeat,” he promised.
Israel launched an attack on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out a devastating attack on southern Israel, killing at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials.
At least 8,796 people have been killed in continued Israeli bombing of Gaza, including 3,648 children, according to Palestinian authorities.
Haniyeh said Hamas had warned Israel’s “fascist government” about its “controversial policies” before its attack, highlighting settlement expansion in the West Bank and attacks on Islamic holy sites, such as the Al-Aqsa Mosque. .
The Hamas leader said regional unrest would continue until Palestinians achieve their “legitimate rights to freedom, independence and return.”
A refugee camp affected
The remarks came after Israeli forces attacked the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza for the second day in a row, killing dozens of people, according to Palestinian officials.
More than 50 people were killed the day before in an Israeli air raid on this densely populated neighborhood, Palestinian authorities said.
Hamas said seven Israeli hostages, three of whom held foreign passports, were killed in the attack.
Hamas’ military wing has previously said “nearly 50” hostages had been killed in previous Israeli air raids on the besieged territory.
The Israeli military confirmed it attacked the Jabalia refugee camp, Gaza’s largest, saying Tuesday’s airstrike killed Ibrahim Biari, a senior Hamas official, and many other “terrorists.” Biari helped orchestrate the October 7 attack, Israel said.
UNICEF warns of child deaths
The United Nations Children’s Fund said the aftermath of the Israeli attack was having a devastating impact on Gaza’s children.
“More than 420 children are killed or injured every day in Gaza – a number that should shake every one of us,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.
Hamas leader Haniyeh also said the bloodshed must stop and called on the world to continue coming together to defend the Palestinian cause to put pressure on policymakers.
He accused Israel and its ally the United States of blocking mediation efforts.
On Friday, the United States and Israel were among 14 out of 193 U.N. member countries to vote “no” on the General Assembly resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian truce. However, 120 countries voted “yes” to the resolution, while 45 abstained.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected calls for a ceasefire, saying it would amount to “surrender” to Hamas. The main Palestinian armed groups fighting in Gaza, including Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, have not called for a ceasefire.
