On Martyr Ismail Haniyeh's legacy: Al Mayadeen interviews his son
8 Min Read
In an interview with Al Mayadeen, Abdul Salam Haniyeh details his martyred father's son from birth until his assassination, revealing his will for the people.
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Martyr Ismail Haniyeh's eldest son, Abdul Salam, in an exclusive interview with Al Mayadeen, August 12, 2024 (Al Mayadeen)
Al Mayadeen interviewed Abdul Salam Haniyeh, the eldest son of martyred Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated by "Israel" in the Iranian capital of Tehran on July 31.
The interview commenced with a tribute to Martyr Ismail Haniyeh, and a scene commemorating the final goodbye, during which a diverse mobilization of people, from different nationalities, races, and sects, who had love for Abu al-Abed (Martyr Ismail Haniyeh), bid his soul farewell.
The mobilization of millions across the world, in the "unification procession of the Ummah", during the martyr's procession from Tehran to Doha, was a clear message from the Ummah and the free people of the world, relaying that the Palestinian cause was theirs, Abdul Salam Haniyeh said.
He added that the masses that bid the martyr farewell affirmed that Palestine and al-Quds are "the Ummah's compass, no matter how difficult the circumstances are," stressing that the Ummah will certainly honor whoever carried them throughout their life and legacy, the way it honored Abu al-Abed."
On Ismail Haniyeh's relationship with the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the Republic of Iran, Sayyed Ali Khamenei, Abdul Salam said a close affinity tethered them, and witnessed all of their meetings, until the final one."
According to Abdul Salam, uniting the Ummah to liberate Palestine was a primary notion in Ismail Haniyeh and Sayyed Ali's relationship.
A leader since birth
Ismail Haniyeh was firm regarding principle but simultaneously represented a pragmatic character that served to approach different polarities to one another.
Besides occupying a political position, Haniyeh was "a man of the people". He sat on his home's porch, played soccer with the youth, and sat with the elderly in his home, even as prime minister.
Abdul Salam told Al Mayadeen about the factors that made Ismail the exceptional leader that he was, reminiscing about his father's childhood in the al-Shati camp in the Gaza Strip.
Martyr Haniyeh was an icon of sociability, education, sportsmanship, humanity, and jihad, in the camp where he grew up, where families and factions merged, and was the "heart that empathized with whoever he could reach," Abdul Salam described.
His college days at the Islamic University initiated a primary part of his political activism, particularly while heading the student council in 1985.
During his time at university, as well as the al-Shati refugee camp, Haniyeh followed the political current and tensions, as well as the work of the Palestinian Islamic and national factions, but "as the head of the student council, he was the unifying figure within the institutions and student blocs," his son stated.
During the interview, Abdul Salam relayed that his father was entrenched in the First Intifada, between 1987 and 1994. He was arrested for the first time in 1987, only 10 days after the First Intifada, while he led the youth and the Islamic Bloc.
In 1989, Haniyeh was in the Israeli occupation's administrative detention, alongside most leaders of the student council, the national and Islamic action blocs, and the leaders of the Hamas and Fatah movements, among others.
Based on all of this, Abdul Salam Haniyeh stressed that his father followed "the approach of unity, homeland, harmony, and brotherhood," throughout his life.
In 2004, Martyr Haniyeh received the torch from Martyr Abdul Aziz al-Rantisi, making him the head of the Hamas political bureau. At his peak, Haniyeh became Gaza's prime minister in 2006.
The martyr leader and his sons did not forget his connection to the camp after becoming prime minister. He "absolutely refused to leave it, and the camp, to him, was rooted in the mother issue of Palestine, its core being the issue of refugees," Abdul Salam confirmed.
Since 2004, until Haniyeh's martyrdom, the Gaza Strip witnessed massive development across all national, infrastructural, popular, humanitarian, and jihadist actions.
Sheikh Yassine's right-hand man
Throughout the interview, Abdul Salam clarified that the founder of the Hamas Resistance movement, Sheikh Ahmad Yassine, chose Ismail Haniyeh to be his right-hand man because of the abundance of traits he possessed.
Martyr Haniyeh grew up under Yassine's wing, who considered him "his son, his family's son, and that of the camp and the country." He further noted that Ismail Haniyeh "had political acumen, a societal mindset, and was a master of oratory."
According to Abdul Salam, his martyred father participated in the ignition of the Majd security apparatus, which was headed by Yahya Sinwar in 1985.
Haniyeh had a security background, alongside his political one, according to his son, who said he was part of the Majd apparatus until his arrest in 1989.
The brotherly bond connecting Haniyeh and Sinwar
On his relationship with Yahya Sinwar, who recently succeeded the martyred leader following his assassination, Abdul Salam described their relationship to be engulfed in a brotherly bond.
Abdul Salam said "Plenty of secrets held them together," adding that Sinwar once told his family "If you are going to envy me for loving someone, let that person be Abu al-Abed."
In this context, Abdul Salam noted that Sinwar and Haniyeh were connected during their college days, their time in the student council, the Majd apparatus, and then during their detention, until they were separated while arrested.
Abdul Salam Haniyeh continued, stressing that loyalty was manifested in the Wafa al-Ahrar deal when Abu al-Abed was the head of the Hamas movement and the government and played the role of the "umbrella" for the operation to capture the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, which consequently led to the conclusion of a prisoner exchange deal and the release of Sinwar from Israeli prisons as a result.
On Haniyeh and Yasser Arafat's relationship
Abdul Salam Haniyeh also expanded on the "special" relationship between the martyred leader and the Fatah movement, specifically with the late Yasser Arafat.
He stressed that Arafat "loved the martyred leader's style and policy," and explained that he saw in Haniyeh "a visionary who entered the legislative parliament and authority, as well as establishing ties with the authority."
Since there was no unified decision in Hamas regarding this matter, given the circumstances surrounding the movement and their ramifications abroad and locally, "the martyred leader put the unity of the movement before himself and his vision," his son confirmed.
He added that the movement, in 2005, fully adopted the vision of martyr Haniyeh, which he had presented 10 years ago.
'Joyous when helping people, angered by betrayal'
On a personal level, Abdul Salam spoke of the bond between Ismail Haniyeh and his children, describing him as a friend, a brother, and an admirer, who treated them with friendship and love, rather than order and forbiddance.
"His home was always open, and whoever sought him received a response... He was at his happiest when he helped people," Abdul Salam said.
But Abu al-Abed, who felt joy when lending a helping hand, was often enraged by indolence, betrayal, and the desecration of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, he added.
During the Al Aqsa Flood, the betrayal of Gaza, which was slaughtered from vein to vein, upset him the most, amid the silence of the international community and Arab regimes.
The living martyr's will
Martyr Ismail Haniyeh always sought martyrdom, and always knew he would leave this world at any moment, Abdul Salam said.
The martyred leader willed that his sons "preserved his legacy driven from the people's love for him, continued to help people, and sustained the al-Sahti camp and the unity of the people, neighborhoods, neighbors, and family." He also wished his children would carry his legacy through brotherly and friendly bonds with the children of Palestine, Abdul Salam concluded.
