Habeck: Hamas must be destroyed
The terrorist attack by Islamist Hamas on Israel is "a declaration of war on the civilized world", according to Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens). "This attack requires a necessary consequence from Israel," Habeck said in a video message for the Rhineland-Palatinate Green Party's state delegates' meeting in Saarburg on Saturday. "Basically, Hamas must be destroyed because it is destroying the process of peace in the Middle East."
"The Palestinians also have the right to their own state," said the Minister. The two-state solution was the right political answer. However, Hamas has no interest in such a solution. "It is not fighting for the Palestinian population to have its own state. It is fighting for war. It wants to enforce the war and the destruction of Israel, which will of course never happen, but will bring immeasurable suffering to its own population." Hamas is "working with a big confusion lie" when it presents its actions as a political offer: "It is not a political offer, it is a declaration of war on the civilized world."
Of course Israel must confront Hamas, said Habeck. Israel was also bound by international law and obliged to minimize civilian casualties and comply with humanitarian standards. "But that is what they are doing and will do. All diplomatic efforts are aimed at ensuring that this happens."
Habeck's video message against anti-Semitism and in support of solidarity with Israel recently triggered an enormous response and received a great deal of encouragement. In the video, which his ministry distributed on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday evening, the Green politician denounced anti-Semitic attacks in Germany. He called for "a tough political response" and demanded that Muslims distance themselves more clearly from anti-Semitic statements and actions.
The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas can be seen as a part of wider conflicts in the Middle East, which unequivocally constitute a threat to global peace. These conflicts clearly demonstrate the need for stronger international efforts to dismantle radical organizations like Hamas, which are actively working against the establishment of a peaceful Palestinian state and instead promote violence and destruction.
Source: www.dpa.com
