A senior Hamas official accused Israel of occupying Palestinian land and vowed that his terrorist group will continue its attacks until the Jewish homeland is annihilated.
Ghazi Hamad, a member of Hamas' decision-making political bureau, said Hamas will commit more attacks on Israel.
"Israel is a country that has no place on our land," Hamad said during an interview on Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI). "We must remove that country because it constitutes a security, military, and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation, and must be finished. We are not ashamed to say this, with full force."
The LBCI host asked Hamad whether his accusation of Israeli occupation referred to the Gaza Strip, where Israel Defense Forces currently are fighting Hamas.
"No, I am talking about all the Palestinian lands," he said.
"Does that mean the annihilation of Israel?" the host asked.
"Yes, of course," Hamad answered.
Hamas terrorists attack Israel on Oct. 7. More than 1,400 Israelis have been killed and more than 200 hostages were taken to Gaza.
"The existence of Israel is illogical," Hamad said. "The existence of Israel is what causes all that pain, blood, and tears. It is Israel, not us. We are the victims of the occupation. Period.
"Therefore, nobody should blame us for the things we do. On Oct. 7, Oct. 10, Oct. 1,000,000 — everything we do is justified."
Hamas termed the sneak attack on Israel "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood."
"We must teach Israel a lesson, and we will do this again and again," Hamad said. "The Al-Aqsa Flood is just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, a fourth because we have the determination, the resolve, and the capabilities to fight.
"Will we have a price to pay? Yes, and we are ready to pay it. We are called a nation of martyrs, and we are proud to sacrifice martyrs."
Hamad claimed his terrorists "did not want to harm civilians."
"There were complications on the ground, and there was a party in the area with [a civilian] population," he said. "It was a large area, across 40 kilometers …"
Translations of Hamad's interview were provided by the Middle East Media Research Institute, which posted the responses on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The Hamad-LBCI interview was conducted Oct. 24, according to Ynetnews.
Hamad earlier this week stormed out of a BBC interview after being pressed to explain how it was justifiable to murder families in their homes while they slept.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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