Hamas Reiterates Armed Resistance against Israel
News number: 9007277896
18:48 | 2011-12-18
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=9007277896

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, would never give up
armed resistance against the Zionist regime of Israel, a Hamas official
said, rejecting reports that the group has accepted to end its armed
struggle against the Israeli regime.

According to Palestinian media reports, Salah al-Bardwil, a member of Hamas
Political Bureau rejected the claims raised in some western media about an
agreement between Hamas Politburo Chief Khaled Mashaal and Fatah leader
Mahmoud Abbas about ending armed campaign against the Israeli regime.

Western media have quoted Abbas as saying that Fatah and Hamas had agreed
during their reconciliation talks on giving up military resistance to stand
against the Zionist regime only through "peaceful popular resistance".

"Hamas is against giving up armed resistance," Bardwil stated, and added,
"This issue has not been raised during the negotiations between Hamas and
Fatah."

He reiterated that popular resistance is a priority for the Palestinians,
but it does not at all mean that armed resistance should end.

Another senior Hamas official Ismail Radwan had earlier said that armed
resistance remains a strategic option for Palestinians, while affirming that
popular action was also an integral part of challenging Israel's policies.

Radwan told Ma'an news agency that "all aspects of resistance are open and
permissible and open to us".

Late in November Meshaal had told AFP in an interview that "every people has
the right to fight against occupation in every way, with weapons or
otherwise. But at the moment, we want to cooperate with the popular
resistance".

"We believe in armed resistance but popular resistance is a program which is
common to all the factions," he said.