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Palestinian Authority Mourns ‘National Symbol,’ Terrorist Leader Ismail Haniyeh
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas attends the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, April 28, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
Hamas Political Bureau Chairman Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran yesterday. Condolences were offered from a plethora of Palestinian Authority (PA) officials, including PA leader Mahmoud Abbas and Jibril Rajoub.
President Abbas condemned the assassination and declared a day of national mourning:
President of the State of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas declared a day of mourning and lowering of flags to half-mast for a full day as a sign of mourning over the assassination of former Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh. …
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas strongly condemned the assassination of Hamas Chairman Ismail Haniyeh. He said it was a cowardly act and a dangerous development.
[WAFA — official PA news agency, July 31, 2024]
Abbas also called Khaled Mashaal, former Hamas Movement chairman and new temporary leader, to express condolences, according to WAFA.
Fatah Central Committee Secretary Jibril Rajoub also wrote a long Facebook post describing the arch-terrorist in heroic language. More than just telling us about Haniyeh, the post tells us about the support for terror that runs at the core of the PA.
Jibril Rajoub also serves as Head of the PLO Supreme Council for Youth and Sports, Chairman of the Palestinian Football Association, Chairman of the Palestine Olympic Committee, and Chairman of the Palestinian Scout Association (PSA):
With great sadness and sorrow, and full of pride, Fatah Movement Central Committee Secretary Jibril Rajoub announces the death of the great national leader
The Martyr, Sheikh Ismail Haniyeh, ‘Abu Al-Abed’
Political Bureau Chairman of the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas
Who ascended to heaven as a Martyr following a cowardly assassination operation today (Wednesday). And so, he joined the convoy of Martyrs for the homeland who have ascended to heaven on the way to freedom and independence.
The crime of assassinating the Martyr leader Abu Al-Abed is heinous and is part of a long record of crimes by the Occupation against our people. It is a continuation of the total war of annihilation waged by the Israeli war machine against everything Palestinian.
In the face of this grave tragedy, we – and on behalf of the Palestinian leadership, the Fatah Movement Central Committee, the Revolutionary Council, and all the movement’s leaders, members, and supporters in the homeland and in the Diaspora – today inform our people, the masses of our Arab and Islamic nation, and the free people of the world about the death of a great leader, a dear brother, a friend, and a staunch fighter who dedicated his life to his homeland and the righteous causes of his people, and who served as a beacon of resilience and ongoing struggle on the way to freedom and independence…
As we say goodbye today to a national symbol of struggle, we express the noblest feelings and sincere condolences to the brothers in the leadership of the Islamic Resistance Movement – Hamas, to the sons and family of the Martyr, Sheikh Ismail Haniyeh, and to the entire Haniyeh family in the homeland and in the Diaspora…”
[Fatah Central Committee Secretary Jibril Rajoub, Facebook page, June 31, 2024]
Itamar Marcus is Founder and Director of Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Palestinian Authority Mourns ‘National Symbol,’ Terrorist Leader Ismail Haniyeh first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.