Hamas leader threatens Tel Aviv, urges Bahranis to strike over US summit
Yahya Sinwar says the terror groups will ‘pulverize’ the center of Israel in the next round of cross-border fighting; orders residents of the Gulf state, due to host conference where parts of Trump’s peace plan will be unveiled, to declare general strike
Speaking at a conference calling for an intifada in honor of Al-Quds Day, which marks the day the Palestinians lost control of the holy city, Sinwar said: “In the next confrontation with Israel, we will pulverize Tel Aviv with double the force than during Operation Protective Edge." Al-Quds Day is celebrated annually with a march in Tehran, characterized by “Death to Israel” chants and burning of Israeli flags.
“We will improve our weapons and combat capability until our goal is achieved. In the last confrontation we used some missiles that came from Iran, while others were manufactured locally,” Sinwar said, referring to the latest deadly flare-up between Israel and Hamas earlier this month, which claimed the lives of four Israeli civilians.
“Beer-Sheva was attacked with a grad rocket that weighs 40kg (88 pounds), Tel Aviv was struck with an Iranian Fajr-5 rocket and with locally manufactured rockets,” he said. “Without the Iranian support, the Palestinian resistance would not have achieved these capabilities. Our nation has given up on us in the most difficult of times but Iran continues to help with knowledge and equipment."
The 56-year-old then echoed the sentiments of his political rival Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas by criticizing the U.S.-engineered summit intended to encourage investment in the Palestinian areas. "I ask you this on behalf of the residents and factions of the Gaza Strip and on behalf of all the Palestinian people wherever they are, you must declare a general strike on the day of the conference or workshop in Bahrain," Sinwar said.
"Avoid going outside, stay in your homes and raise black flags. Show everyone that you stand with Jerusalem … that you support the people of Palestine. Don’t turn your back on those who are protecting the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Jerusalem."
The terror group’s leader also urged the leaders of the countries participating in the June 25-26 conference to reject President Donald Trump’s peace proposal, dubbed “the deal of the century,” which Sinwar claims “seeks to present Jerusalem to the Zionist occupation.”
"We are against the deals aimed at ending the conflict in the region and integrating the so-called Israel in it,” Sinwar said. “The people of Gaza declare that this conflict will only be over when the occupation ends, and we’ll be able to return to Jerusalem and enter the liberated Al-Aqsa Mosque. This is the mindset that was passed down to us with our mothers’ milk.”
