Senior Hamas political bureau member Ghazi Hamad openly credited the October 7 terrorist massacre with forcing Western nations to recognize a Palestinian state, declaring in a weekend Al Jazeera interview that “the initiative by several countries to recognize a Palestinian state is one of the fruits of October 7” while vowing that Palestinians will never surrender their weapons.
The interview, broadcast by the Qatar-based network over the weekend, featured Hamad brazenly celebrating what he characterized as the diplomatic benefits of Hamas’s brutal attack that killed over 1,200 Israelis and took hundreds hostage. The senior terrorist official asked rhetorically, “Why are all the countries recognizing a Palestinian state today? Before October 7, did any country dare recognize a Palestinian state?” He claimed that “the fruits of October 7 are what caused the entire world to open its eyes to the Palestinian issue — and they are moving toward it with force.”
According to a MEMRI translation of the Al Jazeera interview, Hamad made clear that Palestinian terrorism and weaponry are inextricably linked to what he calls the “Palestinian cause.” “Without our weapons, no one would be looking in our direction,” Hamad stated during the interview, adding more ominously, “I’ll say it very clearly and in a nutshell: the weapons constitute the Palestinian cause. Our weapons equal our cause.”
The Hamas leader also launched a scathing attack on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, claiming credit for Hamas in reviving international interest in Palestinian statehood. “For more than a decade, no one spoke with Abbas about a two-state solution or the establishment of a Palestinian state. All that was offered to the PA was humanitarian aid,” Hamad declared. “We [Hamas] are the ones who brought the issue back to the forefront, and that is why all the countries are starting to recognize a Palestinian state.”
The Hamas official emphasized that Palestinians have been “raised since childhood” with an armed resistance mindset, declaring, “We, as Palestinians, will not surrender our weapons. They need to understand this. Not even a blank round. Surrendering our weapons will only come as part of the political solution. Israel can only dream that we will ever surrender our weapons to it.”
Hamad attempted to justify the October 7 atrocities by claiming they were a “response to all the Israeli crimes over 77 years,” insisting that “Palestinians are not doing anything illegal” and that “we are not terrorists and we are not using any terrorist methods.”
The terrorist leader outlined what he claimed were three “historic achievements” from the October 7 massacre: Bringing the Palestinian cause back to “center stage,” convincing the world that Israel’s “mask has fallen,” and proving that “defeating Israel is not as difficult as people had thought.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded sharply on X, posting:
In his voice, Senior Hamas terrorist Razi Hamed [sic] thanks France, UK and Canada for recognising a Palestinian state: ‘The initiative by several countries to recognize a Palestinian state is one of the fruits of October 7. We proved that victory over Israel is not impossible, and our weapons are a symbol of Palestinian dignity.’ If this who applauds you — what does it say about you?
Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Amichai Chikli responded to Hamad’s boasts on Saturday by slamming French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, calling him “a failed joke” while sharing images of the Hamas official. Chikli’s rebuke came after Barrot had condemned what he called the “despicable, unbearable” images of Israeli hostages held for 667 days by Hamas in Gaza, highlighting the contradiction between European condemnation of Hamas’s brutality and their simultaneous moves toward Palestinian state recognition that reward the very terrorism they claim to oppose.
Hamad’s latest statements echo his previous declarations that Hamas would repeat the October 7 attack “time and again until Israel is annihilated.” In a November 2023 interview with Lebanese television, the same Hamas official declared, “Israel is a country that has no place on our land” and promised to carry out similar attacks “twice and three times” until Israel’s destruction.
The timing of Hamad’s boastful remarks coincides with increasing international pressure on Israel following recognition of Palestinian statehood by several European nations, including France, the United Kingdom under Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government, and Canada, which has declared its intention to recognize a Palestinian state by September. As Breitbart News previously reported, President Trump has characterized such moves as “a reward for Hamas” and warned against appeasing terrorist organizations.
The Hamas official’s frank admission that October 7 was designed to achieve diplomatic gains through mass murder validates longstanding Israeli and American leaders’ warnings that rewarding terrorism only invites more violence. His insistence that Palestinians will never disarm also underscores the fundamental impossibility of any negotiated settlement to end the war in Gaza, particularly given that Hamad, who is based in Qatar as a member of Hamas’s political bureau and part of its negotiating team, represents the very organization supposedly engaged in ceasefire talks.
Hamad’s celebration of October 7’s “fruits” serves as a stark reminder that Hamas views international recognition of Palestinian statehood not as a step toward peace, but as validation of its strategy of using mass murder to achieve political objectives. For Western leaders now entertaining Palestinian state recognition, the terrorist leader’s own words provide a chilling testament to the consequences of appeasing extremism.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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