As Ramadan, a month of prayer and forgiveness, ends in a week, Hamas apologized for the first time to Gazans for the suffering caused by the war. In a long statement published Sunday evening on its Telegram channel, the Palestinian Islamist movement “apologizes” for the difficulties caused by the war against the Israeli army which has lasted for almost six months, causing famine, desolation, and more than 32 000 deaths to date. In this “a message of thanks to the people” of the Gaza Strip, whose “exhaustion” it recognizes, Hamas also reiterates its desire to continue this war, which, according to it, must make it possible to achieve “victory and freedom” of the Palestinians.
Necessary “sacrifices”
Hamas, elected at the head of the Gazan enclave in 2006, which administers it without having reorganized an election since, claims to have wanted to maintain its objective of price control, within the limits of its capacities "given the aggression in progress”, to try to alleviate the difficulties of residents; he claims to discuss with other armed movements, “popular committees” and “families” in order to “resolve the problems caused by the occupation”.
In recent months, various Hamas personalities, such as Khaled Mechaal, former head of the Hamas political bureau, had estimated that “sacrifices” were necessary for the “liberation” of the Palestinians.
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Since Israel swore to annihilate Hamas, in response to the bloody attacks on its soil on October 7, more than 32,000 people have reportedly been killed in the Gaza Strip, a number that is absolutely unverifiable due to the war and the closure of borders which prevents foreign journalists from going there.
In November, when the death toll was around ten thousand, the United States, Israel's ally, estimated that the reports given by the Gaza Ministry of Health, run by Hamas, were fatally underestimated, and that the number of deaths could only be higher, mainly due to the urban density of Gaza, a very small territory where 2.3 million people live.
The living conditions of the population are all the more alarming as more than 1.5 million people have fled from the north of the strip to the south, piling up in makeshift camps in the greatest destitution, without care. and without food. According to the UN, famine could occur in the coming weeks.