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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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Israel to Send Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Ceasefire Talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem, Sept. 2, 2024. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
Israel has decided to send a delegation to Qatar for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, an Israeli official said, reviving hopes of a breakthrough in negotiations to end the almost 21-month war.
Palestinian group Hamas said on Friday it had responded to a US-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal in a “positive spirit,” a few days after US President Donald Trump said Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalize” a 60-day truce.
The Israeli negotiation delegation will fly to Qatar on Sunday, the Israeli official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters.
But in a sign of the potential challenges still facing the two sides, a Palestinian official from a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing in southern Israel to Egypt and clarity over a timetable for Israeli troop withdrawals.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has yet to comment on Trump’s announcement, and in their public statements Hamas and Israel remain far apart.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the terrorist group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.
Israeli media said on Friday that Israel had received and was reviewing Hamas’ response to the ceasefire proposal.
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Tucker Carlson Says to Air Interview with President of Iran
Tucker Carlson speaks on July 18, 2024 during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photo: Jasper Colt-USA TODAY via Reuters Connect
US conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson said in an online post on Saturday that he had conducted an interview with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, which would air in the next day or two.
Carlson said the interview was conducted remotely through a translator, and would be published as soon as it was edited, which “should be in a day or two.”
Carlson said he had stuck to simple questions in the interview, such as, “What is your goal? Do you seek war with the United States? Do you seek war with Israel?”
“There are all kinds of questions that I didn’t ask the president of Iran, particularly questions to which I knew I could get an not get an honest answer, such as, ‘was your nuclear program totally disabled by the bombing campaign by the US government a week and a half ago?’” he said.
Carlson also said he had made a third request in the past several months to interview Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will be visiting Washington next week for talks with US President Donald Trump.
Trump said on Friday he would discuss Iran with Netanyahu at the White House on Monday.
Trump said he believed Tehran’s nuclear program had been set back permanently by recent US strikes that followed Israel’s attacks on the country last month, although Iran could restart it at a different location.
Trump also said Iran had not agreed to inspections of its nuclear program or to give up enriching uranium. He said he would not allow Tehran to resume its nuclear program, adding that Iran did want to meet with him.
Pezeshkian said last month Iran does not intend to develop nuclear weapons but will pursue its right to nuclear energy and research.
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Hostage Families Reject Partial Gaza Seal, Demand Release of All Hostages
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – As Israeli leaders weigh the contours of a possible partial ceasefire deal with Hamas, the families of the 50 hostages still held in Gaza issued an impassioned public statement this weekend, condemning any agreement that would return only some of the abductees.
In a powerful message released Saturday, the Families Forum for the Return of Hostages denounced what they call the “beating system” and “cruel selection process,” which, they say, has left families trapped in unbearable uncertainty for 638 days—not knowing whether to hope for reunion or prepare for mourning.
The group warned that a phased or selective deal—rumored to be under discussion—would deepen their suffering and perpetuate injustice. Among the 50 hostages, 22 are believed to be alive, and 28 are presumed dead.
“Every family deserves answers and closure,” the Forum said. “Whether it is a return to embrace or a grave to mourn over—each is sacred.”
They accused the Israeli government of allowing political considerations to prevent a full agreement that could have brought all hostages—living and fallen—home long ago. “It is forbidden to conform to the dictates of Schindler-style lists,” the statement read, invoking a painful historical parallel.
“All of the abductees could have returned for rehabilitation or burial months ago, had the government chosen to act with courage.”
The call for a comprehensive deal comes just as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares for high-stakes talks in Washington and as indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in Doha within the next 24 hours, according to regional media reports.
Hamas, for its part, issued a statement Friday confirming its readiness to begin immediate negotiations on the implementation of a ceasefire and hostage release framework.
The Forum emphasized that every day in captivity poses a mortal risk to the living hostages, and for the deceased, a danger of being lost forever. “The horror of selection does not spare any of us,” the statement said. “Enough with the separation and categories that deepen the pain of the families.”
In a planned public address near Begin Gate in Tel Aviv, families are gathering Saturday evening to demand that the Israeli government accept a full-release deal—what they describe as the only “moral and Zionist” path forward.
“We will return. We will avenge,” the Forum concluded. “This is the time to complete the mission.”
As of now, the Israeli government has not formally responded to Hamas’s latest statement.
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