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August 19, 2005
Interview with Hamas Leader: "Let Israel die."
CameraBlog pointed out that in the wake of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, Palestinian terrorist groups are voicing their intent to continue "armed struggle" against Israel until there is no longer a Jewish state.
Now, MEMRI brings us further evidence, with excerpts from an interview with Hamas leader Mahmoud Al-Zahar published in Asharq Al-Awsat yesterday.
On the future of Gaza:
Q: "Israelis fear that Gaza could become the land of Hamas after the withdrawal."
A: "Let Israel die."
Q: "Is this an encouragement for the Palestinian Authority to clamp down on Hamas with an iron fist?"
A: "No one can crackdown on us with either an iron fist or a golden fist."
Q: "Have you prepared to enter the settlements?"
A: "We will enter the settlements and sully the dignity of Israel with our feet. We will stand on the ruins of the Israeli settlements and tell our people we have prevailed. This is nonnegotiable. We will secure the Gaza Strip and prevent anyone from occupying it again. In past experiences, government land was stolen.
On future "operations":
Q: "Will Hamas resume its operations in Israeli towns after the withdrawal?"
A: "Firstly, there are no Israeli towns. These are settlements. If the aggression and occupation continue, the Palestinian people will have no alternative but to defend themselves. The Palestinian people are not killing the occupiers or being killed out of fun or madness. The life spent by our generation in killing, imprisonment, and exile is not the life that we want for our sons. We want them to live in security and peace and to live in a homeland in which they are able to move and not to live as slaves of the Israeli enemy."
Q: "In other words, the resistance of Hamas in the future will be in response to Israeli actions."
A: "No, our position depends on two things: the withdrawal from the Palestinian territories and the extent of the aggression against the Palestinian people."
Posted by rh at August 19, 2005 03:46 PM
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