In the shadow of the security escalation in Judea and Samaria, a senior Hamas official, Khaled Mashal, warned tonight (between Saturday and Sunday) that “We are headed for an escalation in Ramadan, we are on the verge of boiling over, and we as Palestinians must unite on the battlefield, as in Nablus, Jenin, Gaza and other cities, against the bully government.” He also accused Israel of escalation, and stated that “the Palestinian people know that the homeland cannot be returned, except through resistance in all its forms.”
Mashal continued, saying: “The occupation brought nothing but destruction to the Arab countries, as a result of the political relations with them. Netanyahu’s criminal government has three main issues on its agenda – resolving the conflict over Jerusalem, al-Aqsa and the West Bank, peace cannot be achieved without resistance.”
Senior Hamas official Khaled Mashal during a visit to Cairo (Photo: Getty Images)
Also, a senior Hamas official referred to the political-security summit in Aqaba, in which Israeli and Palestinian representatives participated in order to prevent a security escalation in Judea and Samaria. According to him, “There is no alliance with criminals, how many times can one be deceived?” and also attacked the Arab countries that decided to normalize their relations with Israel. Mashal emphasized that “the occupation is like a crow that will drag you to the carcass of the dogs. We are one nation and we must deal with our differences through brotherhood and dialogue. The main conflict must remain with the occupation and the colonialist nation. The unity of the Arab and Islamic nation must be renewed.”
Khaled Mashal’s words come after a murderous week in Judea and Samaria, in which three Jews were murdered. Last week, there was a shooting attack near Hawara in Samaria, in which the brothers Hillel Yaniv Weigal Yaakov, the late, were murdered. MDA medics and paramedics gave them medical treatment on the spot and evacuated them to Linson Hospital, but they were pronounced dead there. Only a day later, on Monday, Alan Ganels, a 27-year-old American citizen, was murdered in a shooting attack near the Dead Sea.
As you may recall, against the backdrop of the clashes in Hawara, Palestinian officials told the “Palestine Al-An” news agency this week that “a decision was made to activate the incendiary and detonation balloon units towards Israeli settlements adjacent to the besieged Gaza Strip.” According to the sources, the balloons will be released at the same time as the night harassment unit is activated.” According to the report, the decision was made after the night of riots in Hawara, when settlers burned dozens of cars, shops and family homes. During the clashes, dozens of Palestinian families were evacuated from their homes by the IDF, after that were set on fire.