Hamas Leader Says Israel Won't Be Able To Impose Its Terms On Palestinians

Head of Hamas political bureau Ismail Haniyeh said Wednesday that Israel will never be able to impose its terms on the Palestinian people, neither through war nor through politics.

During his meeting with Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi in Tehran, Haniyeh praised Iran's positions towards Palestine and reviewed the course of the Israeli war against the Gaza Strip and efforts for its end.

He emphasized that the "(Israeli) occupation shattered the image of its army and appeared in its true form without embellishment, living in political isolation, while the reality of American position and absolute support for the occupation and endorsement of its crimes, including genocide, has emerged."

He urged the Islamic world to "stand by Gaza."

Raisi said Iran "is firm in defending the rights of the Palestinian people, and it values and takes pride in its support for the Palestinian cause," according to the Iranian official news agency IRNA.

He said "the Palestinian issue, in light of the resistance and heroic steadfastness shown by the people of Gaza, has transcended the boundaries of the Islamic world to become a global issue concerning humanity."

He said the countries that were seeking normalization with Israel "are now ashamed before their peoples."

"The recent events in Gaza constitute another major disgrace for the US and some Western countries in supporting the murderous Zionist entity against children, while the nature and true face of the US and the West for the peoples have become evident," he added.

Haniyeh arrived in Tehran on Tuesday, and also met Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Palestinian territories since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas which killed around 1,200 people and took around 250 as hostages. It has vowed to continue the war until "total victory."

More than 32,000 Palestinians have since been killed besides causing mass destruction, displacement and shortages of necessities.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in January issued an interim ruling that ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala​​​​​​​ -