The following is a collection of research and translations from the MEMRI Palestinian Project this past year.
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The following are selected MEMRI TV clips from The Palestinian Project in 2020, on a variety of topics.
Palestinian Islamic scholar Issam Amira said in a November 15, 2020 interview on Al-Waqiya TV (Lebanon) that after a clip of him praising the beheading of French schoolteacher Samuel Paty was published by MEMRI in October (see MEMRI TV Clip No. 8418), Israeli police summoned him for interrogation. He said that he has been banned from entering the Al-Aqsa Mosque for six months, and that Israel's adoption of European "behavior" is apparent. Amira said that he had been told that his statements were not protected as free speech, and he reiterated that insulting the honor of the Prophet Muhammad is a line that must not be crossed. Al-Waqiya TV is a Hizb ut-Tahrir affiliated channel.
On November 12, 2020, Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas-Gaza) aired an animation that depicted Palestinians killing Israeli civilians, policemen, and soldiers in Jerusalem. The animation shows an eagle flying alongside Palestinians in cars as they run over and shoot Israeli soldiers and rifle-toting Ultra-Orthodox Jews. In one scene, the eagle transforms into a Palestinian teen who stabs a Jew in the neck. In a later scene that takes place outside of the Old City in Jerusalem, a Palestinian man being interrogated by policemen stands up and stabs one of the policemen in the neck. The animation then cuts to a graveyard full of graves of IDF soldiers, where a visiting Israeli servicemember is killed by the eagle. A title reads: “Jerusalem: The Horror of the Zionists.”
Palestinian Islamic scholar Mahmoud Al-Hasanat said in an October 30 Friday sermon in Istanbul that was posted on YouTube by Al-Irtiqa Islamic Center that the Islamic nation is an army of 1.5 billion people who are prepared to defend the Prophet Muhammad. Speaking about France, he said that the "time for admonishment" is over, and he called on his audience to boycott French products and "fight them anywhere." Al-Hasanat also said that French President Emmanuel Macron does not yet know that the entire Islamic nation is prepared to sacrifice their blood and souls for the sake of the Prophet Muhammad.
Palestinian political researcher Sheikh Ahmad Al-Khatwani said in a November 5, 2020 lecture at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem that once established, an Islamic state would be able to easily conquer Rome and liberate Al-Andalus, Kashmir, Chechnya, East Turkestan, India, and other Muslims lands. He said that an Islamic state would extinguish polytheism in the Vatican and that its only concerns would be Jihad and the spread of Islam. In addition, Al-Khatwani said that the Islamic state would reject the United Nations and any form of international law, and that it would conceal its Islamic goals when necessary to spread Islam and rule the world. He added that the Islamic state would not fear defeat or death. The lecture aired on Al-Waqiyah TV (Lebanon).
Hamas Political Bureau Chairman Ismail Haniyeh said at the First Electronic Pioneers Conference, organized by the Global Coalition for Quds and Palestine, which took place on November 7, 2020 and was aired on Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas/Gaza), that those who support the Palestinians must shift from a strategy of support to a strategy of "full cooperation" for the liberation of Palestine and Jerusalem. He elaborated that support for the Palestinians must be upgraded from support through "soft power" to support by means of money, weapons, and political strategy. Other speakers at the conference included former Hamas political bureau chairman Khaled Mashal, and South African MP Zwelivelile Mandela, Nelson Mandela's grandson.
Palestinian Islamic scholar Sheikh Issam Amira said during his weekly lesson at the Al-Aqsa Mosque that it is a great honor for the Chechen youth to have beheaded French teacher Samuel Paty and it is a great honor for all of the Muslims as well. He said that the only terrorism permitted according to Islam, is "terrorizing of enemies". The lecture was posted on the Al-Aqsa Call YouTube channel on October 29, 2020.
Palestinian scholar Nidhal "Abu Ibrahim" Siam spoke at a rally at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, organized by Hizbu ut-Tahrir, and which was aired on Al-Waqiyah TV (Lebanon) on October 30, 2020. He said that the only response to France and President Macron is to declare Jihad and that the armies of the Caliphate will conquer Rome and France and remove Macron and his "corrupt" civilization. He added that the civilization of France and the West, which he said is the civilization of prostitution, promiscuity, and homosexuality will be replaced with Islamic civilization and justice. The crowd chanted slogans such as: "With Jihad we will destroy your [Macron’s] honor" and "tomorrow we will conquer Paris."
Palestinian academic Younes Amr, the President of Al-Quds Open University, said in an October 5, 2020 interview on Jordan TV that Israeli authors, including those who write Hebrew books for children, have been influenced by "religious stereotypes" and call for Palestinians to be killed or deported. Giving an example, he argued that a drowning Jewish youth might rather drown than be saved by an Arab because of what he has been taught about Arabs and their hostility. Younes Amr published a book in 1989 about "the Image of the Arab in Hebrew Children Books."
Dr. Muhammad Suleiman Al-Farra, the Vice Dean of the South Branch of the Islamic University of Gaza, said in a September 26, 2020 interview on Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas/Gaza) that Arabs who have been congratulating Israelis and Jews on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, are "rushing headlong into heresy." He said that doing this is a violation of shari'a law, and that people who consider Israel to be a brotherly country are going against Allah's commands against befriending Jews or Christians.
Jibril Rajoub, the Secretary of Fatah's Central Committee, said in a September 29, 2020 interview on Palestine TV that if the Arabs keep pressuring the Palestinians about Israel and the United States, then they may decide to "change the rules of engagement." He said that all options are on the table and that the Palestinians should stay loyal to the legacy of "giants" such as Yasser Arafat, Sheikh Ahmad Yassin, Abu Ali Mustafa, Ahmad Sa'adat, and Marwan Barghouti.
Dr. Nasser Al-Laham, a Palestinian journalist who serves as the editor-in-chief of Maan News Agency and as an analyst for Palestinian and Regional Affairs for Mayadeen TV, said in a September 16, 2020 interview on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) that the UAE and Bahrain mistakenly believe that Israel and the Zionists love them. He said that these countries are clearly not well versed in the Bible, the Talmud, or The Protocols of the Elders of Zion and that Israel's peace deals with the UAE and Bahrain will become a direct occupation of their media, economy, and politics. Furthermore, Dr. Al-Laham said that the Israelis are after the Gulf's billions, and that Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu wants to follow the example of U.S. President Donald Trump.
On September 13, 2020, Al-Jazeera Network (Qatar) aired a documentary about the Hamas missile manufacturing industry. The reporter explained how Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades have been reclaiming unexploded Israeli munitions from 2014's Operation Protective Edge, metal water pipes left behind by Israel when it withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, and cannon shells from the wrecks of British warships that sank near Gaza during World War I. The documentary featured interviews with the commanders of the Al-Qassam Brigades' Military Production Units, Engineering Corps, Artillery Corps, and Frogmen Unit, who described the process of reclaiming these munitions and turning them into functional missiles.
The report also showed exclusive footage of this process, including footage of divers retrieving underwater shells, of metals being processed, of explosives being prepared, and of missiles being tested. Furthermore, the reporter and the interviewees explained that Iran has been shipping Kornet anti-tank missiles and Fajr missiles to Gaza by land and by sea. Abu Ibrahim, the Commander of the Military Productions Unit, said that Hamas has hundreds of warheads, dozens of tons of explosives and propellants, and enough metal water pipes to produce thousands of rockets.
Former Hamas Representative in Tehran Mustafa Al-Lidawi said in an interview on the Iranian Arabic language Al-Alam TV, on September 6, 2020, that European Jews Used to mix the blood of non-Jewish children in the Passover Matzos. He added that although the Israelis no longer practice this today, they still believe that God commanded them to use the blood of goyim, non-Jews, in their Passover Matzo. Al-Lidawi was one of the Hamas leaders, who were deported by Israel to Lebanon in the early 1990s. He later served as the Hamas representative in Tehran and had his own show on Al-Alam TV. Al-Lidawi was eventually expelled from Hamas. He made some headlines in 2012, when he was kidnapped in Syria and was tortured by his captors, before his release, following Hamas and Hizbullah mediation.
Fatah Central Committee Member Azzam Al-Ahmad said in a September 15, 2020 interview on Al-Araby TV (Qatar/U.K.) that Fatah hopes the people of UAE and Bahrain will "restrain" their leaders and cause them to reconsider the peace agreements they have signed with Israel. He said that the Palestinians are defending Mecca, Baghdad, Cairo, Amman, Damascus, and Jerusalem from the Zionists' "territorial designs" of expanding from the Nile to the Euphrates. He also said that Fatah will continue to "serve as the spearhead" against the United States and the Zionist movement.
Khaled Al-Batsh, a member of the political bureau of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, said in a September 14, 2020 interview on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) that the meaning of the "comprehensive resistance" agreed upon by the leaders of the Palestinian factions is that the resistance against Israel would start with the pen, songs, and poems, and would be followed by rocks, knives, guns, and rockets.
Mahmoud Al-Habbash, an advisor to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said in an August 15, 2020 interview on Palestine TV that Jerusalem and Palestine will be liberated from the occupation and will belong exclusively to the Palestinians. He said that normalization of relations with Israel is treason, that it is normalization with the enemies of the Prophet Muhammad, and that the Palestinians will continue to fight the occupation even if they are all slaughtered.
Senior Fatah Official Jibril Rajoub, the Secretary of the Fatah Central Committee, said in a September 7, 2020 interview on Palestine TV that Fatah has come to an agreement with Hamas to engage in peaceful resistance against Israel that could potentially escalate into an Intifada. He said that at first, this resistance would be peaceful but "all options are on the table." Rajoub said that the Palestinians want to make the people in Tel Aviv feel that the occupation has become costly.
Saleh Al-Arouri, the Deputy Chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau, said in a September 7, 2020 interview on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) that in the next war with Israel, which he threatened will involve the Israeli home front, Israel will pay an "unprecedented price." He also said that Hizbullah's support of Hamas and other Palestinian factions has never ceased. Elaborating, he recalled that when he was in prison during the Second Intifada, leaders from Hamas, Fatah, and the Islamic Jihad all enjoyed support from Hizbullah and would meet to plan attacks.
Nabil Shaath, an advisor to PA President Mahmoud Abbas, said in a September 4, 2020 interview on TRT Arabic TV (Turkey) that at the recent conference of 14 Palestinian faction leaders, the Palestinians stressed that they have a right to total confrontation with Israel, including economic boycotts and that they are prepared to conduct an armed intifada. Shaath added that the Palestinians will not give up their struggle until the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza comes to an end and until an independent Palestinian state is established with Jerusalem as its capital.
Osama Hamdan, Hamas' representative in Lebanon, denied in a September 2, 2020 interview on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) that that there is any problem in the relations between Hamas and Hizbullah. He said that the two organizations maintain deep and strategic relations that cannot be ended or be reduced by an "incident here or there."
Sheikh Mraweh Nassar of the Palestine Scholar Association in the Diaspora said in an August 18, 2020 interview on Channel 9 (Turkey) that the UAE is building temples for Hindus while the Babri Mosque in India is being destroyed. He said that 1,200 mosques in Palestine have been turned into "pigsties, brothels, and bars," while 350 mosques have been built in Europe. He said that Christians have sold their churches to Muslims, who have established mosques in their stead. He added that in Moscow alone there are now 1,500 mosques, and that the time has come to bring Islam to the whole world.
Palestinian Islamic scholar Dr. Omar Fora said in an August 19, 2020 show on Al-Quds Al-Youm TV (Islamic Jihad – Gaza) that Israel aspires to establish a "Greater Israel" that will stretch from the Nile River to the Euphrates River, and he said that it will eventually demand lands in Medina and other regions of the Arabian peninsula. He said that Mizrahi Jews are the only Jews who will have a right to live with the Palestinians under Palestinian authority, and that Ashkenazi Jews such as those from Russia, Ukraine, Poland, and Belarus should go back to where they came from.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said in an August 18, 2020 speech that aired on Palestine TV that the entire world has supported the Palestinians by rejecting the legitimacy of the Deal of the Century. He said that the UAE has attempted to "delude the world" with its peace agreement with Israel by pretending that the Palestinian cause was limited only to the rejection of Israeli annexation plans. President Abbas also said that this peace agreement is a "deception" and a "stab in the back of the Palestinian cause."
Palestinian cleric Najib Rafat said in an address at the Al-Aqsa Mosque that was uploaded to the Internet on January 31, 2020 that the response to the Deal of the Century should not be a cold, muted, worthless, narrow, putrid, nationalist, pan-Arabist, lowly, or defeatist response. Rather, he said that the Islamic nation should respond to President Trump by "preparing the latent resources of the [Islamic] nation," announcing the establishment of a Caliphate, getting rid of sinful leaders, and sending huge armies to invade and conquer America. Sheikh Rafat prayed for Allah to support the Muslims against the evil infidels and to make them worthy of liberating Jerusalem and conquering Rome and the United States. His audience chanted: "Allah Akbar! Glory belongs to Allah!"
Former Hamas minister Ismail Radwan said in a February 10, 2020 interview on the Arabic-language Al-Alam TV (Iran) that he salutes Iran on the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, especially in light of the death of Qasem Soleimani and of the recently-released Deal of the Century, which he referred to as the "Deal of Shame." He expressed appreciation for Iran's support of the Palestinian cause and its resistance, and he said that that Hamas is "in the same trench" with Iran, Hizbullah, and all the resistance forces in the region. In addition, Radwan said that the resistance forces are working to thwart the Deal of the Century and that the assassinations of Islamic Jihad official Muhammad Al-Ata, PMU Deputy Chairman Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis, and Qasem Soleimani "open the door" for the resistance to settle the score with Israel and the Trump administration. He said that the American administration would have to drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza and annihilate the Palestinian people in order to disarm the resistance, and he warned that the U.S. and Israel would bear full responsibility for any "stupid act" that targets the weapons of the resistance or that "imposes realities on the ground" in the framework of the Deal of the Century.
Hamas cleric and TV host Iyad Abu Funun said in a February 6, 2020 sermon broadcast on Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas-Gaza) that the guns of the Palestinian people will "break Trump's nose" and teach him that the Palestinians are alive on their land. He said that Trump cannot control the destiny of the Palestinian people the same way he can give away real estate properties, and he threatened: "You want us to hand over our weapons [after] Allah [has] bestowed upon us the capability to manufacture drones and missiles that hit Tel Aviv and Haifa? Come and take them, so we can give you a lesson in manliness and heroism! We will take your life before you can take a single gun away from us."
Palestinian-Lebanese Islamic scholar Sheikh Ali Al-Yousuf, who is a member of the International Union for the Support of Jerusalem and Palestine, said in a February 6, 2020 interview on Channel 9 (Turkey) that the Palestinians will rip out Israel's livers and spleens and deliver a "mighty and deadly" blow to its heart in a fashion similar to how Israeli forces shot Muhammad Salman Al-Haddad, a Palestinian 17-year-old who was killed by Israeli forces during a February 5 protest in the West Bank. Sheikh Al-Yousuf said that the Palestinians in Lebanon still "erupt like a volcano" and fight on the Palestinian front while simultaneously fighting on the Lebanese front against injustice, tyranny, and oppression and against those who want to "restrain" and "neuter" the Palestinians by getting them to accept repatriation in Lebanon. He added: "We continue saying: No to repatriation, no to deportation, yes to returning to Palestine."
In a speech that aired on February 5, 2020, on Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas-Gaza), Rajaa Al-Halabi, who is the leader of the women's movement of Hamas, said: "We say to [U.S. President Donald Trump]: You lunatic, you idiot, we have one last opportunity and that is to liberate Palestine in its entirety, Allah willing."
Palestinian political analyst Nasser Al-Yafawi said in a January 25, 2020 interview on Alkofiya TV (UAE/Egypt) that the "compass of resistance" should point to Palestine and that the Deal of the Century, U.S. President Donald Trump, and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu will all die. He argued that a deal similar to the Deal of the Century was made against Poland during WWII, but that the Poles survived, remained united, and ended the occupation of their land. In addition, Al-Yafawi said that there should be a negotiations group headed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as well as a group consisting of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other factions that will continue the resistance against Israel. He added that if the Palestinians properly "repeated the experience of Vietnam and Algeria," they will succeed in ripping apart the Trump peace plan and spit in Trump's face.
On Friday, March 20, 2020, one day before two cases of COVID-19 infection were confirmed in the Gaza Strip, Gazan Imam Jamil Al-Mutawa said in a sermon at the White Mosque in Gaza that COVID-19 is a "soldier" of Allah, which severely affected the United States, Israel, Iran, Italy, and China, while leaving the Palestinians and Gazans unaffected. Claiming that there is a new COVID-19 victim every eight minutes in Iran and Italy, Sheikh Al-Mutawa prayed for Allah to continue unleashing the virus against the people behind the Deal of the Century. He said: "Look how anyone who schemes against the Al-Aqsa Mosque is being shattered to smithereens... This is the greatness of Allah!" The sermon was aired on Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas – Gaza).
Yaser Mazhar, the Director of the Communications Department of the Muhjat Al-Quds Foundation, was interviewed on Al-Quds Al-Youm TV (Islamic Jihad - Gaza), which is headquartered in Lebanon. Mazhar and the show host, Majed Al-Babili, discussed the 1996 suicide bombing at Dizengoff Center in Tel Aviv that killed 13 people and injured 130 others. Saying that the Islamic Jihad had carried out the operation, they praised the terrorist and terrorists who have carried out similar attacks, and Mazhar said that martyrdom operations bring a lot of joy to the Palestinian people. He recalled how Palestinians have handed out sweets throughout their provinces in celebration of terrorist attacks, and he called on Palestinians in the West Bank to carry out terrorist attacks in Israel. Al-Majli added: "What was taken by force can only be taken back by force." The Muhjat Al-Quds Foundation offers aid to the families of Palestinian terrorists who were killed or who are imprisoned.
#7855 - Hamas TV Animation Depicts Terrorist Attack In An Israeli Shopping Mall
On March 13, 2020, Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas - Gaza) aired an animation that depicts a terrorist impersonating an Israeli security guard in order to carry out an attack in a shopping mall. The terrorist is shown planning the attack by taking pictures on his phone of the shift rotation of the security guards at the mall. The terrorist then buys clothes that match the security guards' uniforms, returns to the mall dressed as a security guard, and walks up to the current guard in order to swap him out at the end of his shift. The terrorist clubs the current guard over the head, steals his handgun, shoots him, enters the mall, and starts killing people, including Israeli soldiers. The video concludes with a hashtag reading "The Intifada Continues".
In a March 8, 2020 show on Al-Quds Al-Youm TV (Gaza – Islamic Jihad) in honor of International Women's Day, Gazan poet Rihab Kanaan praised female Palestinian terrorists and suicide bombers, including Dalal Mughrabi, who killed 38 Israelis in the Coastal Highway massacre in 1978, and Leila Khaled, who had participated in the 1969 hijacking of TWA Flight 840 by the PFLP. Kanaan praised the Palestinian women who have worn "[explosive] belts of death" in the hopes of liberating Palestine, and she recited a poem that she wrote in honor of Fadwa Hassan Ghanem, who carried out a suicide bombing on the border between Israel and Lebanon in November 1990: "Oh Fadwa, you decorated yourself with sacrifice… Blessed are your wedding garments, which were scattered with the shreds of your body." Kanaan explained that Ghanem had taken pictures in a wedding gown prior to carrying out the operation so that her mother would have the joy of seeing her in wedding garments. She added: "This is the Palestinian woman."
In a March 1, 2020 address that aired on Palestine TV, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas criticized the trade unions, among them the doctors' union, for demanding an increased salary and declaring a strike. He said that this is not the time to strike, considering the challenges that the Palestinians are facing with coronavirus, the Deal of the Century, and the financial siege by Israel. President Abbas went on to praise the recent protests in Hebron, Jerusalem, and Nablus, and he said: "The [women] should be in front at the protests... Seeing the girls beating up a policeman or a soldier really fills my heart with joy. This is how we want our peaceful popular resistance to be. This is our way to vanquish our enemies."
Ahmad Aql, the Palestinian Ambassador to Iraq, said in a February 15, 2020 interview on Al-Etejah TV (Iraq) that the Deal of the Century is part of an American framework and vision meant to enable Israel to control the entire Middle East, including North Africa, Iran, and Pakistan, even beyond the borders of what he referred to as "Greater Israel," which he said is Biblically mandated and the map of which he said is engraved on Israeli 10-shekel coins. He also said that the Arab Spring and terrorism in the region were used as part of this plot to fragment and weaken the region so that any individual component in the region would have to go to Israel for protection and help in achieving its goals.
Palestinian cleric Muhammad Ayed "Abu Abdallah" said in an address at the Al-Aqsa Mosque that was uploaded to the Internet on February 4, 2020 that it is time for the "blood and pride of Islam" to stir in the loyal officers and soldiers (in the armies of Muslim countries) and for them to retaliate against "those evil peddlers who make deals," to pulverize them with a resounding slap, to announce to establishment of a Caliphate, to liberate Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and to set out for Rome and the White House in order to conquer the entire world and rule it through the justice of Islam, as the Prophet Muhammad had promised.
On February 22, 2020, Palestinian ambassador to Iraq Ahmad 'Aql said in a statement aired on the Iraqi Al-Etejah TV and Al-Ahd TV said that the Trump or Netanyahu Deal will not succeed because the Palestinian people has men who are prepared to wage resistance and to make sacrifices. He added that a Palestinian child takes a kitchen knife, kills three armed Israeli soldiers, steals their car, and continues to kill and wound other soldiers somewhere else. He said: "A people who has such children will never be defeated". He said that the Palestinians will resist the Deal of the Century and the American and Zionist enemy until the last drop of a Palestinian child's blood.
Hamas Parliament Speaker Ahmad Bahr said in a January 29, 2020 address that aired on Al-Aqsa TV (Hamas-Gaza) that the Palestinian resistance has a long hand that can reach anyone who is tempted to mess with the rights and holy places of the Palestinians. He said that the downfall of the Deal of the Century, U.S. President Donald Trump, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, and all the schemes and conspiracies against the Palestinian people and cause will come and he emphasized that the resistance will take the life of anybody who tries to disarm it, including Trump or Netanyahu. He added: "[The Quran says:] 'Fight them. Allah will punish them by your hands... Kill them wherever you may find them and drive them away from wherever they drove you away.'"
Bassam Abu Sharif, who served as an advisor to Yasser Arafat when he had been the President of the PA, said in a February 2, 2020 interview on the Hizbullah-affiliated Al-Manar TV (Lebanon) that the Palestinians should "offensively defend" themselves and carry out "defensive attacks" in Tel Aviv and Sderot as retaliation for Israeli bombings in Gaza. He added that Palestinians should "lay siege" to Israel and that a million Pakistani volunteers can be recruited to defend Jerusalem.
Khaled Al-Batsh, a leader in Palestinian Islamic Jihad, addressed a demonstration against the Deal of the Century in Yemen. Al-Batsh said that Palestinians will never negotiate or barter over their land and Jerusalem, even if their "heads are blown off" like in the case of Islamic Jihad field commander Baha Abu Al-Ata or Iranian Qods Force Commander Qasem Soleimani. Al-Batsh called upon "the sons of the Islamic nation everywhere" to besiege American and "Zionist" embassies and consulates around the world and isolate them. He also called upon the people of the UAE, Oman, and Bahrain to disavow from their representatives who were present at the announcement of the Deal of the Century, which he called "Deal of Shame." Al-Batsh said that Arab regimes that are hesitant to reject the Deal of the Century will not be spared by history. He added that these countries should have sent armies and tanks to liberate Jerusalem. The address was aired on Al-Quds Al-Youm, a Gaza-based channel affiliated with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, on January 31, 2020.
Mahmoud Habbash, an advisor to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, said in a Friday, January 24, 2020 sermon that aired on Palestine TV that the Palestinians, the Arabs, and the Muslims will never the Deal of the Century, which he referred to as the "Deal of Shame", the "Deal of Disgrace," and the "Filth of the Century." He said that the deal is a path that leads to treason and that anyone who accepts the deal will pay the price for that treason. Habbash told his audience that the Palestinians have an option to disgrace themselves by accepting the deal, or an option to "fight until [their] neck[s] are chopped off" as the Prophet Muhammad had sworn to fight the infidels. He added that the Palestinians welcome death for the sake of Allah and that they would willingly die if that is the price for rejecting the Trump peace plan.
Abdul Hakim Awad, a member of Fatah's Revolutionary Council, said in a January 9, 2020 interview on Alkofiya TV (UAE/Palestine) that because of Hamas' relationship with Iran, any time that Hamas speaks on behalf of the Palestinian people, it is doing them an injustice. He said that the Palestinian people did not think that Iran or Qasem Soleimani contributed anything to Jerusalem. Awad said that the Iranian leadership has cared more about Yemen, Syria, and Lebanon than it has about Jerusalem and that it did not respond at all when the U.S. moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, an event which Awad said he believes was more significant than the killing of Qasem Soleimani. He said that for this reason, "Qods [Jerusalem] Force Commander" is an empty title.
Mahmoud Habbash, an advisor to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, said in a Friday, January 10, 2020 sermon that aired on Palestine TV that there is something wrong with the judgment and faith of Muslims who “kiss the hands” of Shiites, whom he described as people who slander the Prophet Muhammad, his wives, and his companions in a vile fashion. He said that the Palestinians’ enmity towards America, Israel, and those who stand against the Islamic nation cannot make them forget their enmity towards the Shiites, and he criticized those who embrace the Shiites in order to gain money or prestige. He added that people who curse Muhammad’s companions and violate the honor of his wives are not Muslims.
Fatah Revolutionary Council member Abdel-Elah Atirs said in a January 1, 2020 interview on Palestine TV (Palestinian Authority): "Yasser Arafat, may he rest in peace, signed the Oslo Accords and came here. Later, when he saw [the opening of] the Western Wall Tunnel, he was the one who told the people to take to the streets and fight, and so we waged an Intifada. When he went to Camp David and saw that Jerusalem, or part of it, was not part of the deal, he came back and hinted to us to start the Second Intifada. Fatah's thermometer is ready to move in any direction."
Sheikh Salem Salameh, member of Hamas Legislative Council and Deputy Head of the Palestine Islamic Scholars Association, said in a December 26, 2019 interview on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) that it is inconceivable to Muslims that there are other Muslims who recognize and normalize relations with Israel. He said that this constitutes betrayal of God, of Islam, and of the Muslims, and that Palestine and Jerusalem are Islamic land belonging to all the Muslims in the world. He claimed that U.S. President Washington had warned the Muslims and killed Native Americans because they were Muslims who had mosques. In addition, Sheikh Salameh said that the U.S. passes rulings that allow the Jews to kill the Palestinians.
In a January 6, 2020 speech in Tehran that aired on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon), Hamas Political Bureau Chairman Ismail Haniyeh offered his condolences to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, to the Iranian leadership, and to the Iranian people for the January 3 killing of IRGC Quds Force Commander Qasem Soleimani by the United States. He praised Soleimani for having provided the Palestinian resistance with what it needed in order to attain the power, steadfastness, and devotion it has today. In addition, Haniyeh said that the Americans' "heinous crime" reflects the arrogant and thuggish spirit that covers for the massacres and bloodshed carried out by Israel in Palestine. He said that such assassinations only make Muslims more determined to move forwards towards the liberation of Jerusalem, Palestine, and the will of the Islamic nation. Haniyeh added that Soleimani is "a martyr for Jerusalem."
Hanna Isa, the Secretary-General of the Islamic-Christian Council for the Protection of Jerusalem, said in a December 25, 2019 interview on Al-Alam TV (Iran) that the goal of the International Criminal Court proceedings against Israel is to reach an outcome in which the court rules that ordinary Israelis have committed war crimes. Isa said that the proceedings also leave individual Palestinians and the Palestinian Authority exposed to litigation and similar accusations of war crimes. He added that the Palestinian Authority is obligated to extradite any individuals whom the court requests be extradited.
