Following are excerpts from a public address delivered by Hamas leader Mahmoud Al-Zahhar, which aired on Hamas' Al-Aqsa TV on November 5, 2010:
To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memri.org/legacy/clip/0/0/0/0/0/0/2676.
Mahmoud Al-Zahhar: "On this occasion, dear brothers and sisters, we cannot but recall the crimes of these criminal [Jews] throughout history. Today, we present the world with a bunch of questions, and we challenge it to answer them honestly, for today, interests overshadow moral values, elections overshadow principles, and Zionism has overshadowed the truth.
"We ask the people of the world today: Why did France, in 1253, expel and uproot the Jewish entity, which was represented by the ghetto? Why did they expel them? Because they sucked the blood of the French, because they shed the blood of the French, slaughtered them, stole their money, and conspired against them. At the end of the day, the French had no choice but to expel them in 1253.
"The [Jews] fled north, to Britain, and lived there for only 27 years, until the English realized the criminality of these people, who murdered them, sucked their blood, and stole their money. So they slaughtered hem, and expelled them in 1280.
"We ask the French and the British: Why did you expel them? We ask Germany of pre-Hitler times: Why were the [Jews] expelled in 1384? We ask the [Jews] why France expelled them a second time, in 1360, why Hungary expelled them in 1360, and why Belgium expelled them in 1370.
This was not something new – it started even before 1253, on the day that Pharaoh the tyrant expelled them because they had shed the blood of the Egyptians, and had conspired with their enemies against them. So [Pharaoh] expelled them, after they lost their religion, after the time of Joseph.
"Was this series [of expulsions] anything new? No. After the Czechs expelled them in 1380. Austria expelled them in 1420, Holland in 1444, and Spain in 1492. Russia expelled them after they conspired to assassinate the Czar in 1882, and Germany expelled them once again in 1945.
"The series of expulsions continues to this day. Blood continues to be shed, martyrs continue to fall, our sons continue to hoist the banner high, and Allah willing, their expulsion from Palestine in its entirety is certain to come. We are no weaker or less honorable than the peoples that expelled and annihilated the Jews. The day we expel them is drawing near. [...]
"The nation that opens up its doors, its hearts, and its homes to the [Jews] who were expelled from all corners of the earth was the Islamic nation. [...]
"We extended our hands to feed these hungry dogs and wild beasts, and they devoured our fingers. We have learned the lesson – there is no place for you among us, and you have no future among the nations of the world. You are headed to annihilation." [...]
