Khalil al-Haya, the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, said in an interview aired on Sunday that the Palestinians “have enough will on our side not to restart the war, and we will not give the occupation forces an excuse to restart it.”
“The international community, both the people and the government, will not allow a return to war through occupation,” he added.
Hamas took the agreement seriously and pointed to the prompt handover of prisoners.
“We complied with the ceasefire by handing over 20 prisoners of war, both active and reserve, 72 hours after the ceasefire began.”
Resistance leaders said they had so far handed over the bodies of 17 dead prisoners of war to the Israeli regime and were determined to find the remains of the remaining 13.
“We have a seriousness and a determination and a resistance to not leave any of these bodies behind,” he said. “We will do everything in our power to search responsibly, and the occupation forces must not continue to use this flimsy pretext to harm Palestinians.”
Al-Haya stressed that the Palestinian goal is stability achieved through justice, as demonstrated in meetings between Palestinian factions, including the Fatah movement.
“At the meeting, we talked about how, as Palestinians, we are defenders of stability, we want our stolen rights, and we want to live in a Palestinian entity, a Palestinian state, just like the rest of the world. We have no problem with anyone other than those who have occupied our land and expelled us from it.”
Al-Haya made it clear that the resistance’s presence is directly linked to the occupation and that they will not hand over their weapons until the occupation ends.
“Our weapons, which we and all factions carry, are tied to the presence of occupation and aggression. If this occupation ends and a Palestinian state is established for us, these weapons and their owners will be transferred to the state.”
The official stressed that the vision for a Palestinian state is rooted in international legitimacy.
“We have said that we want a Palestinian state in accordance with international law and world-justified resolutions so that there can be stability in the region. We do not like war and bloodshed. We and our children will pay for this blood.”
MNA/Press TV