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Hamas Escalates amid Sinwar’s Public Appearance - ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive
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London- In the first public appearance of the new leader of Hamas in Gaza since his election, Hamas movement promised to sweep the enemy from Palestine, considering the two-state solution obsolete.

Yahya Sinwar was present at the opening of a mosque in Rafah on Friday accompanied by senior political leaders of the Islamist movement Khalil al-Haya and Ismail Haniyeh.

Sinwar himself made no statement at the event, but his predecessor Haniyeh paid tribute to the former prisoner who spent 25 years “in the jails of the Israeli occupation.”

“This is a source of pride for Hamas and for its prisoners,” Haniyeh told the crowd.

“The enemy’s media are trying to make a distinction between the military and political figures in Hamas, but we tell them we are all fighters and that in the face of the occupation we are all military,” the former premier said.

Haniyeh is considered a supporter of a relatively moderate element in Hamas, while Sinwar is a top commander in its armed wing and strong advocate of armed struggle against Israel.

For his part, al-Haya said that Palestinians would never accept their country to be divided.

“We will fight this enemy that is trying to devour the rest of the remaining land,” al-Haya said.