Veteran Palestinian activist Hanan Ashwari said it was not realistic to “remove Hamas”, as it is not just a military group, but has women’s and student organisations, and is also a political party.
15mVeteran Palestinian activist and former PLO executive committee member, Hanan Ashrawi, told Channel 4 News she believes Hamas will “reinvent itself”.
While Hamas’ disarmament is a condition of Donald Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza, the US hasn’t set a deadline for the Palestinian militant group to give up its weapons.
Speaking to Jackie Long, Ms Ashwari said the war in Gaza is “a horrific experience and it is of such tragic proportions that everybody has to draw conclusions as to where we move from here, where we go next”.
“But to pick up Hamas and blame it and say disappear, it’s not going to happen.”
“To pick up Hamas and blame it and say disappear, it’s not going to happen.”
– Hanan Ashrawi
She said it was not realistic to “remove Hamas”, as it is not just a military group, but has women’s and student organisations, and is also a political party.
On the future administration of Gaza, she said: “Hamas openly said they don’t want to run Gaza, that they will accept a system of governance based on a national unity agreement of independent national professional figures.”
Ms Ashwari told Channel 4 News that although Palestinians have agreed to have an international protection force sent in to help end the violence, the “only real and workable way is to enable the Palestinians to run their own lives, to exercise their right to self-determination without having any kind of white man’s burden or a colonial intervention or an investment programme.”
49mOn Tony Blair’s involvement, she said: “I think you’re going to have a very hard time finding a single Palestinian Arab Muslim or anybody who will have any confidence, to be polite, in Tony Blair.”
“We know where his interests lie. We know what his investments are. We know what he did before.. We don’t want that.”
Watch more here:
https://www.channel4.com/news/war-between-hamas-and-rival-clans-could-decide-gaza-future
https://www.channel4.com/news/at-least-80-killed-in-gaza-amid-israeli-strikes-and-fragile-ceasefire
