Hamas: We’ll continue fighting Israel in political arena

During visit to Turkey, Mashaal calls on Palestinians to leave differences aside for sake of national unity, claims recent rocket fire was act of self defense

Ynet

Published: 03.18.12, 18:30 / Israel News

Hamas politburo chief Khaled Mashaal said Sunday during a visit to Turkey, “We will naturally continue our fight against Israel in political, diplomatic and media fields. We will try to get the greatest support possible from the world.”

He said that the recent missile attacks on Israel were in self-defense, asserting that Palestinian missiles are fired only after Israeli attacks. He also accused Israel of using Gaza as a “guinea pig” when testing its missile capabilities as tensions between Israel and Iran increase.

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Turkish newspaper Zaman Today reported that the Hamas leader dismissed claims that the new Arab regimes would be less willing to support the Palestinian cause.

“We think the Arab Spring is a milestone in our community’s history, and in our opinion, this is the rebirth of a community,” he said.

“The Arab Spring is the way nations voice their own wills and make their own decisions, and it will bring economic growth and development and political and cultural development,” he said.

Mashaal’s meetings in Ankara revolved mainly around Palestinian reconciliation efforts. “We want to open a new page, and we think that we have created a domestic peace atmosphere. Peace is obligatory, and Palestinians should be unified. The Palestine issue is our cause, and our stance on occupation is the same,” he said.

תקיפה ברצועה. “ישראל ירתה קודם” (צילום: EPA)

Israeli strike on Gaza (Photo: EPA)

“I would like to send a message to all Palestinian people living in and out of Palestine: Let’s exert efforts seriously and sincerely to make an internal compromise agreement. … We should sacrifice our personal and political views for the sake of the Palestine cause.”

As part of his visit to Turkey, Mashaal met with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and President Abdullah Gul. On Sunday, he thanked Turkey for its part in the reconciliation efforts conveying Hamas’ appreciation for Ankara.

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