Gaza’s Hamas chief is calling for a renewed violent uprising against Israel.
Speaking at an event marking two years since the prisoner swap in which 1,027 Palestinians were released from Israeli prisons in exchange for kidnapped Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, Haniyeh said that all Palestinian factions and officials should unite and formulate a national strategy that adopts all possible options, including ‘armed struggle, popular uprising and political, diplomatic and media battles.’
Israel is negotiating with the West Bank government of President Mahmoud Abbas. The Islamic militant group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, does not recognise Israel and calls for its destruction. It was responsible for scores of suicide bombings and other attacks against Israel in the last decade.
Israel recently discovered a pair of tunnels from Gaza it says was aimed at carrying out attacks. Pressured by the deterioration of ties with former regional backers Syria, Hezbollah and Iran, together with the fall of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and the ensuing Egyptian crackdown on Palestinian tunnels used to smuggle arms and commercial goods into Gaza, Hamas is in steep financial decline.
Speaking at an event marking two years since the prisoner swap in which 1,027 Palestinians were released from Israeli prisons in exchange for kidnapped Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, Haniyeh said that all Palestinian factions and officials should unite and formulate a national strategy that adopts all possible options, including ‘armed struggle, popular uprising and political, diplomatic and media battles.’
Israel is negotiating with the West Bank government of President Mahmoud Abbas. The Islamic militant group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, does not recognise Israel and calls for its destruction. It was responsible for scores of suicide bombings and other attacks against Israel in the last decade.
Israel recently discovered a pair of tunnels from Gaza it says was aimed at carrying out attacks. Pressured by the deterioration of ties with former regional backers Syria, Hezbollah and Iran, together with the fall of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and the ensuing Egyptian crackdown on Palestinian tunnels used to smuggle arms and commercial goods into Gaza, Hamas is in steep financial decline.