Hamas is “fully prepared to continue the struggle” against the Jewish state, says terror group’s media adviser.
By World Israel News Staff
A senior Hamas official told Arabic-language media that while the terror group is supposedly respecting the terms of the ceasefire, it is “fully prepared” to resume hostilities against the Jewish state.
Hamas media adviser Taher al-Nunu told the outlet Mubasher, an affiliate of Al Jazeera, that Hamas’s grip on power in Gaza has not been compromised by the some 15 months of fighting with Israel.
Al-Nunu pointed to Saturday’s release of Palestinian security prisoners from Israeli detention facilities to the Strip, which saw the convicted terrorists received by Gazans with great fanfare, as proof that Hamas is a unifying force for Palestinians.
“The scenes of the prisoners’ handover prove that the popular front is rallying around the resistance,” al-Nunu said.
The embrace of the freed prisoners by the Gazan public demonstrates that despite the hardships of the conflict, Palestinians are not afraid of continuing the war, al-Nunu claimed.
Videos of Gazan civilians congratulating and hugging released prisoners “send a message to those who imagine they can continue the war” that Hamas is “fully prepared to continue the struggle” against Israel, he said.
At the same time, al-Nunu stressed that the terror group is “ready and prepared” to begin negotiations for phase two of the ceasefire agreement, which is set to begin on Sunday, the 16th day of the ceasefire.
Al-Nunu then poured cold water on international claims that Hamas would not govern the post-war Strip. He said that the Palestinian Authority and its ruling party, Fatah, had rejected a proposal to co-govern Gaza alongside Hamas.
Despite al-Nunu’s bluster about the resumption of war, Hamas has signaled that it is interested in ensuring that ceasefire continues through the second phase.
Hamas has promised the family of arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti that he will be freed during a later stage of the truce.
