Haniyeh in His Own Words

Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed on July 31, 2024 in Tehran, led the so-called politburo of Hamas, a US-designated Islamist terror organization dedicated to the destruction of the State of Israel and the establishment of an Islamic state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.

Hamas’ founding covenant issued in 1988, which echoes the notorious Protocols of the Elders of Zion charging Jews with an international conspiracy to gain control of the world, is replete with antisemitism, just as its revised 2017 charter. In Hamas’ world-view, Islamic precepts forbid a Jewish state in the area known as Palestine, and the Jewish people have no legitimate connection to the land of Israel. As its covenant proclaims, "The land of Palestine is an Islamic trust... It is forbidden to anyone to yield or concede any part of it... Israel will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it..." To this end, the leaders of Hamas have denounced compromise with Israel as a betrayal of the Palestinian cause.

Since his death, various figures have labeled Haniyeh as a moderating force, and separate from Hamas' extreme ideology and terrorist actions, yet nothing could be further from the truth.  Hamas' ideology and terrorism were deeply integral to Haniyeh's own operations and statements.

Following quotes expose Haniyeh’s extremist worldview:

Speaking before the International Union of Muslim Scholars in Qatar on January 9, 2024, Haniyeh justified the October 7 attacks as a response to the success of the Abraham Accords,  saying:

"[…] why was there the Al-Aqsa Flood, why this roaring flood, this strategic shift in the path of resistance and jihad? In response, I say there were three developments before the Al-Aqsa Flood, before the seventh of October. The first development is the marginalization of the Palestinian cause at the global level. The international community, global decision-making circles no longer invoke the Palestinian cause."

He also celebrated the October 7 at the same event in Qatar, saying:

"We must build upon this victory that occurred on the seventh of October. We must hold on to it, build upon it, and accumulate it."

On October 26, 2023, in the wake of the October 7 attacks and Israel’s response, Haniyeh welcomed and celebrated the deaths of ordinary Palestinians in Gaza, saying:

"As I have said repeatedly, the blood of children, women, and the elderly should not make you cry out! Rather, we need this blood to awaken the revolution, to awaken stubbornness, to awaken and move forward."

In an Al-Jazeera interview aired in January 2022, Haniyeh celebrated Hamas rocket attacks on Israeli cities:

In reference to the targeting of Israeli cities during the 2021 Gaza crisis (May 6 – 21, 2021) Haniyeh described mass rocket attacks on Tel Aviv as a "strategic victory" saying, "for 11 days, the rockets of the Qassam Brigades rained down on every inch of Israel, and especially its heart – Tel Aviv, the heart of trade, economic activity, business […] Tel Aviv was targeted, in less than 5 minutes […] with 130 rockets from inside the Gaza Strip."

In an interview dated July 26, 2020, Haniyeh boasted of rejecting a ceasefire agreement, and insisted on the annihilation of Israel as a condition for disarming Hamas:

In reference to a peace deal offer by which Haniyeh explained, "Gaza [...] would become like Singapore [including] the construction of an airport, a seaport, and economic projects in Gaza" in return for which Hamas would recognize Israel’s right to exist, "disband the military wings and incorporate them into the police force" Haniyeh said "naturally, we completely rejected that offer" preferring to hold on to Hamas’ "political principles, resistance, [and] weapons." 

When asked what these political principles were, he made it clear that the annihilation of Israel was his core agenda: "We will not recognize Israel, Palestine must stretch from the [Jordan] River to the [Mediterranean] Sea, the Right of Return [must be granted], the prisoners must be set free, and a fully sovereign Palestinian state must be established with Jerusalem as its capital."

In a public address in May 2021, Haniyeh praising three of the most important Hamas figures behind the October 7 attack, Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Al-Deif and Marwan Issa, for launching the attacks on Israel during the 2021 Gaza crisis, saying:

"…my greetings to the resistance and its leadership in Gaza, foremost among them, my dear brother, the gallant Yahya Sinwar […] and the leader, the mujahid, my dear friend, Mohammed Deif, this brave hero, this blessed man, who is known by millions [even though] they have not seen his face, but they chant his name because Allah has elevated his name…and Marwan Issa and the [other] pillars of the resistance [who are with him, i.e. Deif] because of his sincerity, selflessness, humility and love of Jihad."

At a press-conference in January 2006, Haniyeh eulogized IRGC-Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani, saying:

"[…] the martyr and leader Soleimani – who spent his life supporting the resistance [i.e. Hamas] as the head of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard – because of everything he has done, [he] is a martyr for Jerusalem. He is a martyr for Jerusalem, he is a martyr for Jerusalem!"

In the same address, Haniyeh praised the Islamic Republic of Iran for military support during 2021Gaza Crisis, saying:

"[…] and I must thank those who provided money and weaponry to the valiant resistance. The Islamic Republic of Iran, who did not hold back on money, weapons and technical support."

Addressing a conference in Tehran on the occasion of Quds Day, 2024, Haniyeh praised Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini, saying:

"First, we remember on this great day Imam Khomeini, may Allah have mercy on him. […] He called for Jerusalem Day so that the nation rises to its duty and unifies its forces to liberate Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa from the clutches of the usurping Zionist occupation.

Haniyeh also praised the Islamic Republic of Iran’s "Axis of Resistance" and affirmed Hamas’ role within it: “[T]his blessed battle has united the ranks of the nation’s children, and the greatest scene of this unity has been manifested in the arenas and fronts from Palestine to Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq, with the support and backing of the Islamic Republic of Iran."