Hamas: We have dealt a severe blow to Israel and its future
Hamas and other Palestinian factions in Gaza have dealt a “severe blow that will leave its painful effects on Israel and its future”. Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh said this in a TV speech immediately after the truce with Israel, reported by the Palestinian media. After extolling “the successes of the Resistance” in confrontation with Israel, Haniyeh stressed that “what happened in the West Bank was an Intifada and what the Arabs in Israel did a revolution. They made Israel lose its balance ».
Soon mission of the US Secretary of State in the region
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in a tweet that he will travel “to the region in the coming days” for talks with Israeli diplomacy chief Gabi Ashkenazi, with Israeli, Palestinian and regional leaders. The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, welcomed the ceasefire that took effect overnight. “I urge both sides to consolidate it and stabilize the situation in the long term. Only a political solution will bring lasting peace and security to all, ”he tweeted.
China, for its part, has instead announced that it will provide “emergency humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian government” after a halt to hostilities. The announcement, reports the official Xinhua agency, came from the spokesman for the Chinese Agency for International Development Cooperation, Tian Lin. The declared objective is to help “the Palestinian government and the population to face the humanitarian crisis”, to contribute to the care of the wounded and to find new accommodations for the displaced in Gaza.
Celebrations in the Territories, Hamas claims “victory”
Over the course of the night, after spending 11 days in hiding in fear of Israeli bombing, Palestinians poured into the streets of Gaza en masse. Thousands of people, reports al Jazeera, celebrated the ceasefire in the Palestinian Territories by hugging in celebration in front of bombed buildings and along streets covered with debris. The mosque loudspeakers celebrated the “victory of the resistance obtained over the occupation” of Israel. Cars cruising East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah at dawn waved Palestinian flags and honked their horns, echoing scenes from Gaza.
After the truce, Hamas claimed “victory” in the clash with Israel that began on 10 May. “Today the resistance declares victory over the enemies,” said Khalil al-Hayya, Hamas’ number two in Gaza, as reported by the Jerusalem Post. The Times of Israel speaks of thousands of people gathered this morning in Khan Yunis, in the south of the Strip, outside the home of Mohammed Deif, head of the armed wing of Hamas. For Ali Barakeh, of Islamic Jihad, the truce is a defeat for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a “victory for the Palestinian people”.