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On Tuesday, several senior Islamic Jihad and Hamas leaders appeared in public for the first time since the conflict began, shortly after a long-term truce deal took hold in Gaza.
Mohammed al-Hindi, a senior Islamic Jihad official, and Mahmoud al-Zahar, a senior member of Hamas’ political bureau, were among the leaders making a public appearance – the two gave a victory speech to several thousands gathered at a square in the neighborhood of Rimal in Gaza City. Both leaders had gone underground during the fighting, fearing an Israeli attack, for whom they werelegitimate targets for assassination.
“We’re going to build our port and our airport, and if they attack our port, we will attack theirs and if they attack our airport, we will attack theirs – again” Zahar said in his speech, referring to the two-day suspension of flights heading to Tel Aviv by major European and US airlines in mid-July.
During the current conflict, in which over 2,140 Palestinians have been killed, the Palestinian resistance managed to inflict the heaviest military loss on Israel since 2006.
Zahar also promised that the movement will rebuild the battered enclave and continue “arming itself and developing its resistance capacity”.
Israel had asked for the complete demilitarization of Gaza as one of the key demands during truce talks, which are set to resume in Cairo by month’s end.
Over the course of the war, Israel has said that it destroyed over 30 attack tunnels used by Hamas that run underneath the border, and bombed thousands of weapons manufacturing facilities and rocket launchers. It has also killed three commanders and a top financial figure from Hamas.
Last week, the Israeli air force targeted Mohammed Deif, the leader of the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing – Deif had escaped the strike, but his two children and wife were killed.
