Annexation is Declaration of War, Says Hamas’ Qassam Brigades

A Palestinian fighter from the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades gestures inside an underground tunnel in Gaza in this August 18, 2014. (Reuters)
A Palestinian fighter from the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades gestures inside an underground tunnel in Gaza in this August 18, 2014. (Reuters)
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Annexation is Declaration of War, Says Hamas’ Qassam Brigades

A Palestinian fighter from the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades gestures inside an underground tunnel in Gaza in this August 18, 2014. (Reuters)
A Palestinian fighter from the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades gestures inside an underground tunnel in Gaza in this August 18, 2014. (Reuters)

Hamas’ armed wing said on Thursday that Israel’s decision to annex parts of the occupied West Bank “a declaration of war against Palestinian people.”

“We will make the enemy bite its fingers in regret for such a sinful decision,” said Abu Ubaida, spokesman of the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades.

In a televised speech, Ubaida stressed that “Qassam will not speak much and will say what is clear for the occupation to understand.”

He affirmed the resistance movement’s commitment and pledge to hold a prisoner exchange deal with Israel, noting it was a priority for his group.

He also pointed out that no deal will be made without the release of senior prisoners and prisoners with Israeli blood on their hands.

“The resistance will be the loyal and dutiful guard of the people throughout this war, acting in defense of our people, our land and our holy sites.”

The Qassam’s threats came two days after Hamas’ call for a massive “popular revolution” throughout Palestinian territories and the Arab and Muslim worlds to thwart Israel’s unilateral annexation plan.

Tel Aviv fears the situation could escalate in the Gaza Strip and possibly in the West Bank, and worries that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is trying to drag Hamas to clash with Israel.

Sources said that the cessation of security and civil coordination may affect the payment of salaries and the flow of goods to and from Gaza, stoking tensions in the already-tense coastal enclave.

Israeli security forces are concerned that an escalation in the Strip could coincide with an intifada in the West Bank.



UN Security Council Says Peacekeeping Force Should Remain on the Israel-Syria Border

Israeli army humvees move in the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights, near the Druze village of Majdal Shams in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
Israeli army humvees move in the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights, near the Druze village of Majdal Shams in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
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UN Security Council Says Peacekeeping Force Should Remain on the Israel-Syria Border

Israeli army humvees move in the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights, near the Druze village of Majdal Shams in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)
Israeli army humvees move in the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights, near the Druze village of Majdal Shams in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights on December 21, 2024. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP)

The UN Security Council has unanimously approved a resolution extending the UN peacekeeping force on the Israel-Syria border and underscoring that there should be no military activities in the demilitarized buffer zone.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israeli troops will occupy the buffer zone for the foreseeable future. Israel captured the buffer zone shortly after the collapse of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, The Associated Press said.
The resolution adopted Friday stressed that both countries are obligated “to scrupulously and fully respect” the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement that ended the 1973 war between Syria and Israel and established the buffer zone. The resolution was co-sponsored by the United States and Russia.
The Security Council extended the mandate of the UN peacekeeping force monitoring the border area, known as UNDOF, until June 30, 2025 and called for a halt to all military actions throughout the country including in UNDOF’s area of operations.
The resolution expresses concern that ongoing military activities in the area of separation have the potential to escalate Israeli-Syrian tensions and jeopardize the 1974 ceasefire. It also expresses alarm that violence in Syria “risks a serious conflagration of the conflict in the region.”