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‘Moderate’ Fatah Keeps Bragging It Has More Terrorists Than Hamas
People hold Fatah flags during a protest in support of the people of Gaza, as the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues, in Hebron, in the West Bank, Oct. 27, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma
Fatah is refusing to give up its status among Palestinians as the leading terror organization targeting Israelis.
Seeing Hamas’ popularity surge among Palestinians after the October 7 Hamas-led massacre in southern Israel, Fatah — the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s ruling party — has stressed throughout the war that it has more terrorists, prisoners, and “Martyrs” against Israel “than any other faction.”
Already on October 7, Fatah was bragging that it participated in Hamas’ massacre, so as not to be left out of popular Palestinian support for the atrocities.
Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) published a video showing terrorists wearing yellow Fatah headbands participating in the terror invasion. Throughout the video, chants of “Allahu Akbar” (“Allah is greatest”) are played in the background.
Note that Nahal Oz is not a military base, as claimed by Fatah in the video, but is an Israeli civilian kibbutz, and that most of those murdered on October 7 by Hamas and Fatah terrorists were Israeli civilians.
Since then, Fatah has continued to brag that “more than two-thirds” of terrorist prisoners are from Fatah, and that Fatah was active on the terror scene “even before” October 7. They also emphasize the great number of dead Fatah terrorists — the so-called “Martyrs” — who are also said to far outnumber Hamas’ “Martyrs” in general.
Furthermore, Fatah officials take pride in the fact that not only are their members terrorists, but, at the same time, some of them are also members of the PA Security Forces carrying out a double role as police officers by day and terrorists by night, as PMW has reported in the past.
Western leaders have been eager to promote Fatah and the PA as “moderates” who are suitable to form a new government in the Gaza Strip “the day after” the war. They would do well to read and watch these statements, and understand who the PA and Fatah really are.
Fatah official brags: Fatah has more terrorists than any other faction
Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki: “We [in Fatah] are peaceful, but our Martyrs [i.e., dead terrorists] are more numerous than the Martyrs of all the factions combined,and also our prisoners [i.e., terrorists] are more than two-thirds of the prisoners in the prisons.” [emphasis added]
[Fatah Central Committee member Abbas Zaki, Facebook page, May 16, 2024]
Fatah official brags: “Even before” Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre, Fatah “had already sacrificed more than 133,000 Martyrs”
Fatah Revolutionary Council member Abdallah Kmeil: “Even before Oct. 7, we had already sacrificed more than 133,000 Martyrs, and these are Fatah’s statistics. Fatah alone sacrificed 133,000 Martyrs throughout the years of the Palestinian revolution.” [emphasis added]
[Fatah Commission of Information and Culture, Facebook page, May 21, 2024]
Fatah: Most terrorist “Martyrs” are from PA Security Forces or Fatah
Fatah Spokesman and Fatah Revolutionary Council member Jamal Nazzal: “In recent years, most of the Martyrs were from the [PA] Security [Forces] or from Fatah, and this has significance and meaning that everyone sees. The West Bank, in other words the PA, as you see is not in a state of repose, calm, submission, or waiting.” [emphasis added]
[Alghad TV (Egypt), YouTube channel, March 21, 2024]
Fatah spokesman brags of Fatah terror: “More than half” of terrorist prisoners are from Fatah, some are PA Security Forces members
Fatah Spokesman Abd Al-Fattah Doleh: “Most of the Martyrs in the West Bank since the aggression [i.e., Gaza war] and even before that are Fatah members. More than that, they’re from the [PA] Security Forces… More than half of the prisoners in the occupation’s (i.e., Israel’s) prisons are Fatah members. The other half, in other words, less than half are from all the rest of the factions together. 90% more or less of the Martyrs who ascended to Heaven in the Palestinian West Bank are from Fatah.” [emphasis added]
[“Fateh_Pal65,” X (Twitter) account, Nov. 20, 2023]
Fatah Deputy Secretary: “A great number of the Martyrs are members of [the PA] security forces and Fatah activists”
Fatah Central Committee Deputy Secretary Sabri Saidam [in a] speech he gave on behalf of Fatah … emphasized that … those who ask where Fatah stands regarding what is happening [in the Gaza Strip], the answer lies in how a great number of the Martyrs who have ascended to Heaven in the Gaza Strip and West Bank are members of its security forces and Fatah activists. .. and how more than half of the prisoners are Fatah members” [emphasis added]
[WAFA, official PA news agency, Dec. 31, 2023]
Fatah official: Even Hamas and Islamic Jihad admit “majority of life-sentenced” terrorists are from Fatah
Fatah Revolutionary Council member Abdallah Kmeil: “Even Hamas and the Hamas leaders say, and the brothers in Islamic Jihad also say that the great majority of those who were sentenced to long [prison] terms, the life-sentenced prisoners in the Israeli prison, are Fatah Movement members and [PA] Security Forces members.” [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV, Dec. 18, 2023]
Fatah spokesman: “More than half” of the terrorists in prison “are from Fatah”
Official Fatah Spokesman Abd Al-Fattah Doleh: “Today we are speaking about nearly 8,000 prisoners inside the occupation’s prisons. More than half of the prisoners’ movement are from Fatah, and the remaining less than half are from the rest of the factions together. This shows that Fatah still adheres to the benefit of the struggle. It has carried the flag of armed struggle, it carried the flag of popular resistance in the Stone Intifada (i.e., 200 Israelis murdered), it returned to armed resistance in the Al-Aqsa Intifada (i.e., 1,100 Israelis murdered), and today it is in favor of popular resistance (i.e., violence and terror), and these strategies change and replace each other at every stage, but Fatah has not abandoned any one of its (i.e., terror) options.” [emphasis added]
[Falestinona, Fatah’s Information and Culture Commission in Lebanon, YouTube channel, Jan. 1, 2024]
Fatah official in Lebanon: “75%” of terrorist prisoners are from Fatah
“Secretary of Fatah and the PLO factions in Lebanon Fathi Abu Al-Ardat said: ‘59 years of Martyrs – tens and even hundreds of thousands of Martyrs – of wounded, and of heroic prisoners in the occupation’s prisons. Yes, 75% of these prisoners are from Fatah, with full honor and pride.’” [emphasis added]
[WAFA, official PA news agency, Dec. 31, 2023]
Fatah official stresses Fatah’s support for Hamas, “all Palestinian forces are fighting” against Israel
Fatah Central Committee member Tawfiq Tirawi: “The Israeli steps and the situation that existed before Oct. 7 are what led to what happened on Oct. 7 … Everything that happened is what led to this explosion…In the West Bank, all the Palestinian forces are fighting against the occupation. They are all united and are everywhere and in all the cities, fighting as one with a joint decision against this occupation and against this aggression.” [emphasis added]
[Fatah Central Committee member Tawfiq Tirawi, Facebook page, Oct. 25, 2023]
Fatah official: “Fatah has never relinquished the rifle” and “participates” in Hamas’ war on Israel
Fatah Central Committee member Tawfiq Tirawi: “Who said that Fatah is not participating in the fighting (i.e., Hamas’ terror war on Israel)? Who gave you this information and misled you that we are not participating? … All the Palestinian organizations in the West Bank are fighting and coordinating among themselves on the ground… How many Martyrs are from Fatah? … Fatah has never relinquished the rifle, and it has never relinquished the struggle.” [emphasis added]
[Fatah Central Committee member Tawfiq Tirawi, Facebook page, Nov. 18, 2023]
PLO official: “No Palestinian will condemn” massacre of Israel on Oct. 7, Hamas and Fatah “together in struggle until [Israel] disappears”
Head of the PLO Political and National Guidance Commission and PA Security Forces Spokesperson Talal Dweikat: “Not just His Honor President Mahmoud Abbas. They will not find [one] Palestinian who will make a decision like this and condemn what happened on Oct. 7… Currently the [Hamas-Fatah] rift in the Palestinian mindset is already behind us. Today we are all united against this [Israeli] aggression, and the occupation and all those attempting to break the Palestinian unity will be unable to succeed with these plans… We will continue together in our struggle at all levels until this occupation disappears, and until a Palestinian boy and girl wave the flag of Palestine from the minarets, walls, and churches in Jerusalem.” [emphasis added]
[Official PA TV, Nov. 12, 2023]
Fatah official two weeks after Hamas’ massacre on Oct. 7: “We are united and aiming our bullets” at Israel
Fatah Nablus Branch Secretary Muhammad Hamdan: “We as the Palestinian people are united in all the arenas of confrontation. We are united and aiming our bullets at the occupier and at the settlers.” [emphasis added]
[Fatah Movement – Nablus Branch, Facebook page, Oct. 21, 2023]
For decades, PMW has documented that the PA and Fatah glorify and financially reward terror, profiling themselves to Palestinians as leading the terror campaign against Israel. For example, at the end of 2022, Fatah stressed that it had murdered 20 Israelis that year and that 90% of terrorist “Martyrs” were Fatah members. Back in 2016, PMW exposed that Fatah took pride in the fact that it has murdered 11,000 Israelis.
The author is a senior analyst at Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article was originally published.
The post ‘Moderate’ Fatah Keeps Bragging It Has More Terrorists Than Hamas first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Obituary: Elexis Schloss, 78, an Edmonton entrepreneur and philanthropist who also performed quiet acts of kindness
Elexis (Conn) Schloss, a vibrant entrepreneur and philanthropist who supported a wide array of causes, both in and beyond Edmonton, died in Victoria on Oct. 31. She was 78. Her […]
The post Obituary: Elexis Schloss, 78, an Edmonton entrepreneur and philanthropist who also performed quiet acts of kindness appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Saudi Arabia Ups Anti-Israel Rhetoric Amid Iran Rapprochement, Raising Questions About Abraham Accords Expansion
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends a virtual cabinet meeting from his office in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, May 28, 2024. Photo: Saudi Press Agency/Handout via REUTERS
Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler accused the Israeli military of committing “collective genocide” in Gaza while also pressing Israel to respect Iranian sovereignty, amid reports that Tehran has postponed its planned attack on the Jewish state.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s remarks, made in Riyadh on Monday during a summit of leaders of Islamic nations, underscored the evolving rapprochement between the erstwhile archenemies Iran and Saudi Arabia.
The crown prince, also known by his initials MBS, urged the international community to demand that Israel “respect the sovereignty of the sisterly Islamic Republic of Iran and not to violate its lands.”
The two regional heavyweights restored relations last year after decades of animosity.
MBS’s anti-Israel rhetoric came days after Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election. For Israel, the statement from Riyadh may signal a setback to the normalization process with Saudi Arabia, a long-sought goal within the framework of the Abraham Accords, brokered by Trump during his first term in the White House, that has seen Israel establish formal ties with several Arab states in recent years.
According to a Sky News Arabia report published two days later and citing Iranian officials, Tehran has shelved a planned third direct strike on Israel, with the delay attributed to possible forthcoming diplomatic talks with Trump. Israel Hayom published a similar report the following day, citing officials in Jerusalem familiar with the matter.
Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref expressed his hope that the incoming Trump administration would put a stop to Israel’s campaigns against its terrorist proxies, Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
“The American government is the main supporter of the actions of the Zionist regime [Israel], and the world is waiting for the promise of the new government of this country to immediately stop the war against the innocent people of Gaza and Lebanon,” Aref said at Monday’s gathering.
Observers noted that Saudi Arabia’s shift could stem from both domestic and regional considerations. For the kingdom, improving relations with Iran is a strategic move to de-escalate conflicts in Yemen, where both countries have backed opposing sides. By opening diplomatic channels with Iran, Saudi Arabia also aims to reduce its dependence on Western security guarantees amid growing regional autonomy. According to Dr. Eyal Pinko, a Middle East expert who served in Israeli intelligence for more than three decades, Saudi Arabia is also under pressure from France, a major arms supplier, to maintain a moderate stance and promote regional peace.
“Saudi Arabia understands [it] cannot rely on the Americans” for arms, Pinko told The Algemeiner.
For its part, Iran may be seeking closer ties with the Gulf kingdom as a result of recent Israeli operations that have decimated the senior leadership of Hezbollah, Iran’s most influential proxy in the Arab world that has long served as a strategic partner.
“Iran is spreading its bets all around, not to be on one side or another,” Pinko said.
Hezbollah, along with Hamas in Gaza, had in the past been blacklisted as terrorist groups by Riyadh.
The New York Times last month cited a Saudi tycoon with ties to the monarchy as saying that the war in Gaza has “set back any Israeli integration into the region.”
“Saudi Arabia sees that any association with Israel has become more toxic since Gaza,” Ali Shihabi told the newspaper.
In another blow for Saudi-Israel relations, Riyadh announced it would revoke the license of the Saudi news broadcaster, MBC, after it labeled the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar a terrorist.
But according to Pinko, the chance of Saudi-Israel normalization is not entirely lost, pending a ceasefire.
“If nothing extreme happens with Iran until Jan. 20 [when Trump takes office], I believe that the Abraham Accords will come back to the table,” he said.
The post Saudi Arabia Ups Anti-Israel Rhetoric Amid Iran Rapprochement, Raising Questions About Abraham Accords Expansion first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Germany Opposes EU Foreign Policy Chief’s Proposal to Suspend Dialogue With Israel
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock speaks during a session of the lower house of parliament Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany, Oct. 10, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Thursday publicly rejected a proposal by the European Union’s foreign policy chief to suspend regular political dialogue with Israel in response to the Jewish state’s ongoing military campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza.
“We are always in favor of keeping channels of dialogue open. Of course, this also applies to Israel,” the German Foreign Office said of top EU official Josep Borrell’s plans, according to the German news agency dpa.
The Foreign Office added that, while the political conversations under the EU-Israel Association Council provide a regular opportunity to strengthen relations and, in recent months, discuss the provision of humanitarian aid to Gaza, severing that mechanism would be counterproductive.
“Breaking off dialogue, however, will not help anyone, neither the suffering people in Gaza, nor the hostages who are still being held by Hamas, nor all those in Israel who are committed to dialogue,” the statement continued.
Borrell on Wednesday proposed the suspension of dialogue in a letter to EU foreign ministers ahead of their meeting this coming Monday in Brussels, citing “serious concerns about possible breaches of international humanitarian law in Gaza.” He also wrote, “Thus far, these concerns have not been sufficiently addressed by Israel.”
The regular dialogues that Borrell is seeking to break off were enshrined in a broader agreement on relations between the EU and Israel, including extensive trade ties, that was implemented in 2000.
“In light of the above considerations, I will be tabling a proposal that the EU should invoke the human rights clause to suspend the political dialogue with Israel,” Borrell wrote.
A suspension would need the approval of all 27 EU countries, an unlikely outcome. According to Reuters, multiple countries objected when a senior EU official briefed ambassadors in Brussels on the proposal on Wednesday.
While some EU countries, such as Spain and Ireland, have been fiercely critical of Israel since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, others such as the Czech Republic and Hungary have been more supportive.
Hamas, which rules Gaza, launched the ongoing conflict with its invasion of southern Israel last Oct. 7. During the onslaught, Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists murdered 1,200 people, wounded thousands more, and kidnapped over 250 hostages while perpetrating mass sexual violence and other atrocities.
Israel responded with a military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military and governing capabilities in neighboring Gaza.
Israel says it has gone to unprecedented lengths to try and avoid civilian casualties, noting its efforts to evacuate areas before it targets them and to warn residents of impending military operations with leaflets, text messages, and other forms of communication. However, Hamas has in many cases prevented people from leaving, according to the Israeli military.
Another challenge for Israel is Hamas’s widely recognized military strategy of embedding its terrorists within Gaza’s civilian population and commandeering civilian facilities like hospitals, schools, and mosques to run operations, direct attacks, and store weapons.
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said last month that Israel has delivered over 1 million tons of aid, including 700,000 tons of food, to Gaza since it launched its military operation a year ago. He also noted that Hamas terrorists often hijack and steal aid shipments while fellow Palestinians suffer.
The Israeli government has ramped up the supply of humanitarian aid into Gaza in recent weeks under pressure from the United States, which has expressed concern about the plight of civilians in the war-torn enclave.
Meanwhile, Borrell has been one of the EU’s most outspoken critics of Israel over the past year. Just six weeks after Hamas’s Oct. 7 attacks, he drew a moral equivalence between Israel and Hamas while speaking to the European Parliament, accusing both of having carried out “massacres” while insisting that it is possible to criticize Israeli actions “without being accused of not liking the Jews.”
Borrell’s speech followed a visit to the Middle East the prior week. While in Israel, he delivered what the Spanish daily El Pais described as the “most critical message heard so far from a representative of the European Union regarding Israel’s response to the Hamas attack of Oct. 7.”
“Not far from here is Gaza. One horror does not justify another,” Borrell said at a joint press conference alongside then-Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen. “I understand your rage. But let me ask you not to let yourself be consumed by rage. I think that is what the best friends of Israel can tell you, because what makes the difference between a civilized society and a terrorist group is the respect for human life. All human lives have the same value.”
Months later, in March of this year, Borrell claimed that Israel was imposing a famine on Palestinian civilians in Gaza and using starvation as a weapon of war. His comments came a few months before the United Nations Famine Review Committee (FRC), a panel of experts in international food security and nutrition, rejected the assertion that northern Gaza was experiencing famine, citing a lack of evidence. Borrell’s comments prompted outrage from Israel.
In August, Borrell pushed EU member states to impose sanctions on some Israeli ministers.
Monday’s meeting in Brussels will be the last that Borrell will chair before ending his five-year term as the EU’s foreign policy chief.
The post Germany Opposes EU Foreign Policy Chief’s Proposal to Suspend Dialogue With Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.