Haniyeh family assassination to boost Hamas popularity: Israeli media

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
12 Apr 2024 10:59
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Israeli newspaper Haaretz indicates that the Israeli occupation forces' assassination of the sons and grandchildren of the head of Hamas' Political Bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, is nothing but an act of revenge that will only increase the popularity of Hamas and its leadership among Palestinians.

Hamas' chief Ismail Haniyeh attends a meeting with foreign reporters at al-Mat'haf hotel in Gaza City, Thursday, June 20, 2019. (AP)

Israeli media outlets confirmed, on Friday, that it is not expected that "Israel's" assassination of three sons and five grandchildren of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas' Political Bureau, would weaken Hamas or force it to backtrack from its stance in ceasefire negotiations in Cairo.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz stated in its editorial that Hamas will not change its position during the negotiations, just as military pressure did not lead to the release of Israeli captives held in Gaza.

The newspaper pointed out that Palestinians view this assassination as retaliatory rather than as an influential military action that would significantly destabilize Hamas.

Furthermore, the assassination operation will enhance Hamas's status in Palestine and also bolster the position of Haniyeh, who will gain sympathy and popular support from the Palestinian public as a whole.

Contrary to Israeli occupation claims and incitement against Hamas leaders and their families abroad, Haaretz highlighted a message from Haniyeh after the martyrdom of some of his children and grandchildren, in which he emphasized that his sons are part of the Palestinian people and that Hamas is a popular movement, reaffirming the unity in path and destiny between his children and the Palestinian people.

Inconsistencies in Decision-Making

Haaretz also pointed to inconsistencies in the decision-making process between the security, military, and political levels in the occupation government, adding that if it is true that even the Southern Region Commander, let alone the Chief of Staff, was not informed of the operation in advance, and the person who authorized the attack was the commander of the Southern Region's center of engagement, a colonel, then the level of trust in these institutions will be significantly diminished.

It added that whether Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the operation or was unaware of it, this is another indication of his flaws and the danger posed by his corrupt rule on the lives of prisoners in Gaza.

The website concluded by arguing that if settlers do not come out in large numbers to demand the resignation of those responsible for the Israeli occupation's security failure on October 7 claiming that a different occupation government could salvage the situation, an assumption grounded in false hope amid global agreement that the world post-October 7 is not the same as pre-October 7 .

Yesterday, Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas published the names of a number of its leaders, their sons, and grandchildren who were martyred during Operation al-Aqsa Flood.

Murdered visiting family on holiday

Three sons of the head of Hamas' Political Bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, were killed in an Israeli strike on a car in the western part of the al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, sources told Al Mayadeen on Wednesday.

On the day of Eid al-Fitr, a holiday celebrated by the Muslim community as it marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, the Israeli occupation committed yet another malicious act, killing Hazem, Amir, and Mohammad the sons of Ismail Haniyeh and several of his grandchildren.

This is how Hamas politburo chief Ismail #Haniyeh first heard about the news of the martyrdom of his sons and his grandchildren.

“May they rest in peace,” Haniyeh was heard saying in the video footage that was taken during his visit to the wounded who were transported from… pic.twitter.com/HbMoIOeQrF
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) April 10, 2024

Haniyeh's children who were killed in the attack were: Amal, Khaled, Mona and Razan.

Haniyeh received the news from his assistant while showing great resilience.

The Resistance leader was seen on camera during a hospital visit he had planned on Wednesday, to check up on wounded and sick Palestinians that were transferred to a medical center in Doha. Haniyeh wished God's blessing on his three martyred children and their children, insisting that he would finish his day's program at the hospital.

The Government's Media Office in Gaza said that the Israeli occupation committed the massacre while the three were conducting Eid al-Fitr visits to communities in the Gaza Strip.

On the day of the Eid, 125 Palestinians were murdered by Israeli forces since Tuesday afternoon.