Palestinian Ambassador to India, Adnan Abu Al-Hija, refused to condemn the unprecedented attack on Israel by Hamas that killed hundreds of people, saying that it is similar to what Israel has done with Palestine that no one has condemned so far.
In an exclusive interview with news agency ANI, the envoy said, "What about the Palestinians? From the beginning of this year, 260 people have been killed (by Israel). They are civilians too. We have more than 5,000 people in the Israeli jails. We have about 300 people in administrative detention in Israel, they make hunger strikes to release them. The Israelis have nothing against them, they just put them in jail."
Adnan Abu Al-Hija condemned Israel's 'occupation' of Palestine and remarked that Hamas' latest offensive is "a little bit bigger" than what the Israeli military has done. He further said that anyone who condemns the Hamas operation should also condemn what Israeli "settlers" have been doing in the occupied West Bank region.
When asked if he condemned the attack, the envoy replied, "No sure not, sure not. Hamas is part of the Palestinian people and I condemn the occupation."
We want to live in peace with Israelis, says envoy
The Palestinian envoy further expressed hope that Palestinians will get their independent state - a long-standing demand - and that Palestine wants peace. He said that Israel wants peace and land at the same time - and that they "will never get it". He further accused Israel of violating the 1999 Oslo peace agreement.
"Every day, Israelis confiscate land, build settlements, jail and kill people. The settlers are doing the same as the Israeli occupying forces do... I think in Israel they work in one system, from the High Court to the settlers," he further said.
"We want to live with the Israelis in peace and because of that, we went to Oslo. Because of that, we accepted 22% of our historical land to establish the independent state of Palestine," added Abu Al-Hija.
What is happening between Israel and Hamas?
As the conflict between Israel and Hamas enters its third day, the government declared war and intensified its bombardment of the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a major surprise attack by Hamas. Militants of the armed group infiltrated Israel on Saturday and gunned down several civilians and soldiers during a Jewish holiday and launched over 4,000 rockets at the country from Gaza.
In retaliation, Israel declared war and conducted airstrikes and struck over 1,000 targets in Gaza to prevent more infiltrations. The death count in the conflict crossed 1,200, including 700 killed by Hamas in Israel and 500 killed in Israel's retaliatory strikes on Gaza.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has ordered a 'complete siege' on Gaza, saying that authorities will cut off access to electricity, food and fuel to the area. Israel Defence Forces (IDF) spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said that fighting between Hamas militants and Israeli soldiers continued in and near Kfar Aza, Be’eri, Nirim, Shaar Hanegev, Nir Oz, Alumim and Holit areas.
The Israeli military estimated that 1,000 Hamas fighters took part in Saturday’s initial incursion. According to the United Nations, Israeli airstrikes had destroyed 159 housing units across the Gaza Strip and severely damaged 1,210 others. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to destroy “the military and governing capabilities” of the militant group, which is deeply rooted in Gaza.
The unprecedented attack raised questions on the capabilities of Israel's intelligence agencies Shin Bet and Mossad as to how Hamas were able to display such a surprising show of strength in one of the deadliest attacks on the Jewish country.
(with ANI inputs)
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