The Lebanese "resistance" close to the Palestinian political organization Hamas may be in need to step in the current crisis, as "developments on the ground may require a certain step on the part of the resistance in Lebanon," one of the organization's leaders told Sputnik on Saturday.
“What happened is directly related to Israeli attacks on Jerusalem shrines, the ongoing expansion of Israeli settlements, attempts to bury the Palestinian issue and expel Palestinians from the West Bank,” one of the Hamas leaders, a member of the Politburo of the Palestinian movement, Osama Hamdan, said in an interview with Sputnik. "Early putting an end to the Palestinian issue, this operation is a message that the Palestinian territories are still occupied and must be liberated, and only our people will decide their own fate."
According to Hamdan, the statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is “an attempt to arouse the sympathy of the international community and hide the crimes of the occupying power against the Palestinian people since he took office” against the backdrop of his claims that “it is the Palestinians who are waging wars against them.”
Moreover, the political leader pointed to the strength of the relationship between the Palestinian and Lebanese "resistance," stating further that the current crisis is a "national struggle" against Israelis.
“This is a national struggle against [...] the seizure of [Jerusalem's] holy sites and the expulsion of Palestinians from the West Bank,” he said. “The message of resistance for all Palestinian people today is clear: the West Bank is capable of changing course and imposing a national will to defeat the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands.”
Hamdan also demanded that the international community “stop the hypocrisy that covers up the crimes of the Israeli occupation.”
On Saturday morning, Israel was subjected to a massive rocket bombardment from the Gaza Strip. According to the Israeli army, radicals fired more than 3,000 rockets, and scores of terrorists invaded southern Israel border regions. Since then, the Israeli military has dispatched troops to retake the southern regions from militants. More than 35 Israeli soldiers and settlers, according to Hamas, were taken captive.
In response to the Hamas military operation, the Israel Defense Forces began Operation Iron Swords, directed at Hamas in the Gaza Strip. In a speech to the nation, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel was at war and that he had ordered a complete mobilization of reserves. In an urgent discussion with a number of authorities, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas emphasized the right of the Palestinian people to defend themselves against Israeli troops and settlers.