Former Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal called on Friday for demonstrations across the Muslim world in support of the Palestinians and for the people of neighboring countries to join the fight against Israel.
“(We must) go to the squares and streets of the Arab and Islamic world on Friday,” Meshaal, who currently heads Hamas’ diaspora office, said in a recorded statement sent to Reuters.
Meshaal, who is based in Qatar, said the governments and people of Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt have a greater duty to support the Palestinians.
“Tribes of Jordan, sons of Jordan, brothers and sisters of Jordan… This is a moment of truth and the borders are close to you, you all know your responsibility,” Meshaal said.
‘To all scholars who teach jihad… to all who teach and learn, this is a moment for the application (of theories).’
Jordan and Lebanon are home to the largest number of Palestinian refugees.
Khaled Meshaal, the former leader of Hamas, is pictured in Istanbul in October 2018. He called for a ‘Day of Jihad’ on Friday in a statement released from Qatar, where he now lives
“Hamas does not represent Palestine,” read a sign held during a pro-Palestine protest in Lima, Peru on Wednesday.
Meshaal’s call for a Friday the 13th uprising was echoed by Hamas itself, according to the Israeli-controlled, DC-based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).
MEMRI said that Hamas urged its supporters in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel to rise up.
“We declare next Friday ‘The Friday of the Al-Aqsa Flood’ as a day of general mobilization in our Arab and Islamic world and among the free people of the world,” the statement read.
‘It is a day to gather support, offer help and actively participate.
“This is a day to expose the crimes of the occupation, isolate it and stop all its aggressive schemes.
‘It is a day to demonstrate our love for Palestine, Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa.
‘It is a day for sacrifice, heroism and devotion, and to earn the honor of defending the first Qibla of Muslims, the third holiest mosque, and the ascension of the trustworthy messenger.’
The terror group said everyone should support their ‘just cause’.
“We call on the free people of the world to mobilize in solidarity with our Palestinian people and in support of their just cause and legitimate rights to freedom, independence, return and self-determination,” the group said.
Plumes of smoke billow during Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City on October 12, 2023
Rescuers remove bodies from home targeted by Israeli airstrike
Qatar is working with the United States to try to establish a line of communication with Hamas to try to negotiate for the release of hostages, a top US official said on Wednesday.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was asked at an earlier briefing whether the administration was in direct or indirect contact with Hamas to secure their release, and whether he could describe their condition.
“Now where they are and in what condition, no,” says Kirby.
He said the White House does not know if they are being kept together or if they are being moved around.
‘Unfortunately we don’t know. And that makes efforts very, very difficult.’
He also told ABC White House correspondent Mary Alice Parks that he was ‘not aware of any specific evidence of life on any individual hostage.’
Kirby added that the US is in talks with countries that have lines of communication with Hamas, such as Qatar, to discuss how to free the hostages. Several former senior Hamas leaders live in Qatar.
Meshaal’s call came as Israel vowed to escalate its response to an attack by Hamas with a ground offensive, after Israeli warplanes hit more than 200 targets in Gaza City overnight.
Gaza’s health ministry said at least 1,354 people were killed and more than 6,000 injured in the crowded coastal enclave.
On Saturday, Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip swept through parts of southern Israel, in the deadliest single attack in Israel’s history.