Senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya hailed the ceasefire-hostage agreement revealed just before his speech Wednesday as a “historic moment” and hailed the October 7 massacre as a significant accomplishment that would be proudly conveyed to future generations of Palestinians.
“The occupation’s stated and covert objectives have been defeated by our people. In an address broadcast on television from Qatar, al-Hayya was cited as stating, “Today we demonstrate that the occupation will never overcome our people and their resistance.”
He applauded the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led killings of Israelis, in which Palestinian terrorists killed 1,200 people, primarily civilians, and captured 251 more while committing crimes like torture and rape.
A “military accomplishment” and “a source of pride for our people… to be passed down from generation to generation,” al-Hayya described the most horrific massacre of Jews in a single day since the Holocaust.
Despite calling for a halt to the war, Hamas will continue to seek Israel’s annihilation, using Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque as a “compass,” according to the organization’s lead negotiator in the truce and hostage negotiations.
“As soon as possible, our people will drive the occupation out of our land and out of Jerusalem,” al-Hayya declared.
“Our adversary will never perceive any moment of vulnerability from us,” he continued.
Al-Hayya, the lead negotiator for Hamas in the hostage negotiations, also praised other Iran-supported groups for their coordinated attacks on Israel, including the Houthi rebels in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Al-Hayya asserted that Hamas “will not forgive” the pain caused in the Gaza Strip during the conflict that was triggered by their October 2023 attack, which caused widespread destruction in the coastal enclave. Since then, nearly 46,000 people have been murdered in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, an unconfirmed number that does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Al-Hayya declared, “We will not forget, and we will not forgive, on behalf of all the victims, every drop of blood spilled, and every tear of suffering and oppression.”
In a similar vein, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Gaza’s second-largest terrorist organization behind Hamas, called the ceasefire agreement “honorable.”
To keep the process from being disrupted, Hamas needs Islamic Jihad’s backing for the agreement.
Islamic Jihad issued a statement saying, “Today, our people and their resistance imposed an honorable agreement to stop the aggression.”
Terrorist groups in Gaza “will remain vigilant to ensure the full implementation of this agreement,” the Iran-backed group said, adding that the agreement between Israel and Hamas included the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as well as a “honorable” prisoner exchange.
Alongside Hamas, Islamic Jihad has been fighting Israeli forces in Gaza since capturing hostages during the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
Hamas and other terrorist organizations are expected to progressively free the 94 hostages of the 251 hostages kidnapped on October 7 who are still in Gaza as part of the multiphase agreement announced Wednesday to end the 15-month conflict in Gaza.
Four captives were released prior to the weeklong truce in late November, when Hamas freed 105 civilians. Troops have liberated eight hostages alive, and 40 captives’ bodies have been found, including three that were unintentionally slain by the military while attempting to flee their captors.
In addition, the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014 and two Israeli citizens who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015 are being held by Hamas.