Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh pushed for Palestinian Arabs to rededicate themselves to resisting the “Zionist Occupation” on Sunday, in a speech in honor of the Muslim holiday of Eid Al-Adha.
In his speech, Haniyeh claimed that Israel was attempting to “Judaize” Jerusalem, as well as Judaism’s holiest site, the Temple Mount.
“The occupiers want to change the characteristics of the history, geography and culture in Jerusalem, but our people, led by men and women clinging to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and around Beit al-Maqdis, stand against this attack and this war, with heroism and courage in their hearts, and they stress that this is our country,” he said.
Haniyeh also said that Gaza, the Palestinian Authority (PA), and “conquered lands of 1948” (i.e. Israel within 1949 Armistice lines – ed.) exist only for the sake of Jerusalem, and that, “regardless of price or victims,” and that the “Occupation will not escape the punishment of our struggle.”
Echoing Hamas’s stance on security coordination with Israel, Haniyeh called on the PA to disassociate itself completely with the Jewish state and foment an open war against Israel.
Haniyeh gave his speech hours before a large terrorist mob camped out overnight on the Temple Mount – many wearing green Hamas regalia – with a stockpile of firebombs, rocks, and other weapons, and attacked Israel Police forced early Monday morning at the site.
