Talking to Al Jazeera, Hamas deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri says group expects combating with Israel to proceed after main operation.
A senior Hamas chief has mentioned that the group had captured sufficient Israeli troopers throughout an unprecedented attack in opposition to Israel to make Israeli authorities free all Palestinian prisoners in its jails.
“We managed to kill and seize many Israeli troopers. The combating continues to be on,” Saleh al-Arouri, deputy chief of Hamas’s political bureau, advised Al Jazeera on Saturday.
“Our detainees in [Israeli] prisons, their freedom is looming giant. What we now have in our arms will launch all our prisoners. The longer combating continues, the upper the variety of prisoners will turn into,” added al-Arouri, who mentioned senior officers had been amongst these captured, however didn’t present any figures.
In keeping with the newest figures by Addameer, a prisoners’ rights NGO, almost 5,200 Palestinians are in Israeli jails, together with 33 ladies, 170 minors and greater than 1,200 positioned beneath administrative detention.
The Israeli military has acknowledged troopers and commanders have been killed and prisoners of conflict have been taken. It has not given any figures.
Hamas, the group operating the besieged Gaza Strip, launched the most important operation on Israel in years on Saturday, killing dozens of individuals and wounding tons of after fighters crossed into Israel beneath the quilt of a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza. In the meantime, Hamas social media accounts posted footage of what had been mentioned to be Israeli captives moved alive into the Gaza Strip.
The shock operation from Gaza got here on the heels of the killing of 4 Palestinians within the occupied West Financial institution, widespread Israeli settler assaults, particularly in Huwara, close to Nablus and elevated tensions on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem.
The Israeli navy launched air raids on the Gaza Strip, killing at the very least 198 Palestinians and wounding tons of of others, in line with the enclave’s ministry of well being.
Talking to Al Jazeera, al-Arouri mentioned the group is engaged in a battle for freedom.
“This isn’t a [hit-and-run] operation; we began an all-out battle. We count on combating to proceed and the combating entrance to increase. We now have one prime goal: our freedom and the liberty of our holy websites,” he advised Al Jazeera.
Al-Arouri mentioned Palestinians have a proper to freedom, to struggle the Israeli occupation and to safeguard their holy websites.
“We’ll proceed to struggle till we’re rewarded with victory, freedom and independence,” he mentioned.
As observers famous {that a} land invasion by Israel may very well be imminent, Hamas mentioned it’s prepared for “the worst-case state of affairs”.
“All eventualities are actually potential and we’re prepared for an [Israeli] land invasion,” he added.
Al-Arouri additionally mentioned that Israel had been planning to launch an assault on the Gaza Strip and the West Financial institution.
Earlier, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned his nation is “at conflict”, whereas Palestinian officers say ending the Israeli occupation of their territory is the one assure for “safety, stability and peace” within the area.
The US, in the meantime, mentioned it’ll work to make sure Israel “has what it must defend itself” and the UK, EU and Ukraine have condemned Hamas’s operation in Israel.