Hamas official Ghazi Hamad appeared on a Lebanese news program to proclaim that Israel must “be taught a lesson” and be “removed” before warning that attacks would continue happening until its erasure.
Hamad is a member of the terrorist group’s decision-making political bureau, The New York Post reports.
The video of his interview was republished by Wednesday, with translations provided by MEMRI.
Hamad began: “Israel is a country that has no place on our land. We must remove that country, because it constitutes a security, military, and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation, and must be finished. We are not ashamed to say this, with full force.”
"We must teach Israel a lesson, and we will do this again and again,” he continued. “The Al-Aqsa Flood is just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, a fourth, because we have the determination, the resolve, and the capabilities to fight.”
The Al-Asqa Flood is what Hamas has dubbed its attack that took place on Oct. 7.
Many political figures have questioned the implications of a ceasefire recently and warn that Hamas will use this time and opportunity to rebuild its munitions.
“Will we have to pay a price? Yes, and we are ready to pay it,” he said rhetorically before reminding the audience that Hamas is “called a nation of martyrs, and we are proud to sacrifice martyrs.”
Hamad shifted his focus to the brutal Oct. 7 attack that left over 1400 Israeli civilians dead, with many women, children and elderly being tortured, kidnapped or killed: “We did not want to harm civilians, but there were complications on the ground, and there was a party in the area, with [civilian] population. It was a large area, across 40 kilometers,” he claimed.
He was seemingly describing the area in which a music festival for peace was being held where the militant group reportedly slaughtered around 240 attendees.
The clip cut to Hamad declaring: "The occupation must come to an end."
When pressed by the news anchor, Hamad clarified he was talking about “all the Palestinian lands.”
The anchor asked, “Does that mean the annihilation of Israel?" To which Hamad replied, "Yes, of course.”
"The existence of Israel is illogical,” he claimed. “The existence of Israel is what causes all that pain, blood, and tears. It is Israel, not us. We are the victims of the occupation. Period. Therefore, nobody should blame us for the things we do. On October 7, October 10, October 1,000,000 – everything we do is justified."
