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Lebanese Sunni-Islamist leader Azzam Al-Ayoubi, who is the former leader of the Sunni-Islamist group Al-Jama'ah Al-Islamiyah, spoke in an April 1, 2024 interview on Al-Jadeed TV (Lebanon) about the number of Gazans killed in the current war. He said that the Gazans have sacrificed 30,000 "martyrs" and that "liberation comes at a price," and he pointed out that for contrast, the revolution in Algeria had cost 1.5 million lives. He claimed that thus far, the people of Gaza "accept" and "are pleased with" the number of casualties in the war, and that he thinks these sacrifices are "worth it" because Israel now has a "very bleak future" and the Gazan resistance has remained intact and steadfast in the face of the Israeli military for six months. He elaborated that the war has not been a "losing or reckless bet" for the Gazans, and that even if Hamas and its entire leadership are “martyred” on the path to the liberation of Palestine, this is "no problem" and would still be worth the sacrifice.
Azzam Al-Ayoubi: "At the end of the day, 30,000 [Palestinian] martyrs... In the revolutions launched by many nations in order to be liberated many more people were sacrificed. Algeria sacrificed 1.5 million martyrs. I am not saying we have to sacrifice 1.5 million Gazans, but liberation comes at a price. I believe that we should gauge how much the people of Gaza accept this. Since the people [of Gaza] are so far pleased with this, the number [of casualties] is not the issue.
[...]
"We are talking about a very bleak future for the Israeli entity. Why don't we weigh this in comparison with the great sacrifices made by the Gazans? The sacrifices undoubtedly exceed what one would have imagined, but are they worth it? I think they are. Nobody had imagined that any force on the face of the Earth could remain steadfast facing the Israeli military for six months, or even much less.
"Today, six months have passed, and the resistance in Gaza remains intact. The resistance has not backed down at all. What I am saying is that the people of Gaza were correct in saying that they had prepared everything needed for this confrontation. So, in my view, this has not been a losing bet. The war is still going on. The pain might continue as well, but all the possibilities are open, and I think that up to this point, the decision made by the people of Gaza has not shown to be a losing or reckless bet.
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"If the price for liberating Palestine is to sacrifice Hamas in its entirety – no problem. This is if we honestly believe that our cause is the liberation of Palestine. I will go even further and say that if all of Hamas's senior leaders fall – or rather, are martyred on this path – where's the problem? If we regain Palestine, why is it a problem if Hamas in its entirety is gone?"
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