Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh speaks to international media in Istanbul for the first time since October 7th...
"The Israeli army must completely withdraw from Gaza. Israel also does not want the displaced people to return to northern Gaza. It accepts a limited and gradual return. It is unacceptable.”
He emphasized that Israel proposed a small number of people for a prisoner exchange despite having arrested nearly 14,000 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza since October 7.
“It is Israel and the US, which does not exert any pressure (on Israel), and that is preventing an agreement from being reached."
Palestinian stance:
Haniyeh noted the attack in which his sons and grandchildren were killed and said it reflected three points:
"Firstly, the enemy's failure to achieve military targets for seven months, except for killing civilians, thousands of children, women, and the elderly. Therefore, the massacre carried out during the holiday in which three of my sons and five of my grandchildren were killed is also included in this context and highlights the failure of the enemy.
“The second aspect is the misconception that such a massacre reaching my home, my children, and grandchildren will exert pressure on the leader and the leadership of the movement to make concessions in the ongoing negotiations, which is misleading".
"Thirdly, my sons are part of the Palestinian people, and their situation is the same as that of the Palestinian people. From the very beginning, I said that the blood of my sons is no more valuable than the children of the Palestinian people in Gaza, the West Bank, or anywhere else”.
"Therefore, we are equal in rights, duties, and sacrifices. We accept these with steadfastness, determination and unwavering will. Regardless of the cost and the sacrifices required, we will continue on this path,” he said.
