RAMALLAH, (Palestine Foundation Information Center) Abdul Hakim Hanini, a leader in the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, has said that Israeli settlers’ burning of a vehicle belonging to foreign solidarity activists in Masafer Yatta, south of al-Khalil, is a continuation of the criminal and barbaric behavior of these “terrorist gangs”.
Hanini said in a statement on Friday that “this attack not only targets our people and our cause, but also sends an aggressive message to all the free people around the world who support us, in an attempt to intimidate them and prevent them from exposing the crimes of the occupation.”
He affirmed that the repeated attacks on citizens’ homes and properties, as occurred in Khirbet Susiya in al-Khalil, the village of Jalud, the Aqaba area in the town of Qabalan, the Aqraba plain south of Nablus, and other areas, reflect an organized campaign aimed at forcibly imposing a settler reality at the expense of Palestinian presence.
He added, “Settlers would not have dared to go this far without the direct protection provided by the occupation forces. These assaults represent the official position of the fascist occupation, and are not individual or random acts.”
He emphasized that “our people will not retreat from defending their land and dignity and will confront this systematic escalation with all means of resistance.”
He continued, “There is no security for a thieving settler, and no dream of annexation or displacement will come true for the occupation, no matter how brutal and criminal it becomes.”
Hanini called on human rights and international institutions and all free nations to intensify their solidarity with the Palestinian people and to stand by the solidarity activists who are being targeted simply for standing with Palestinian rights.
Details of the incident
Israeli settlers set fire to a vehicle belonging to foreign solidarity activists, as well as to furniture and water tanks for local residents in southern al-Khalil. They also attacked Palestinian homes in Masafer Yatta, south of al-Khalil, in the southern West Bank.
