More than a thousand people mourn Hamas deputy leader Al-Aruri killed in Beirut
After the prayer, the mourners marched towards the refugee settlement of Shatila, where the dead were to be buried, accompanied by gunshots and shouts of "Allahu Akbar" (God is great). Palestinian flags and those of the radical Islamic Hamas and Islamic Jihad were waved.
Al-Aruri and six other Hamas members were killed on Tuesday in an attack on an office of the Palestinian organization in a southern suburb of Beirut. According to estimates from US government circles, the attack was carried out by Israel.
The assassination of the Hamas deputy chief was a "failed act", one of the mourners told AFP. "The resistance will continue to produce new leaders."
"The enemy believes that by assassinating Saleh al-Aruri it can defeat the resistance and impose its conditions," Hamas' Qatar-based political leader Ismail Haniya said in a speech broadcast to a crowd in Beirut. "But he has failed and will never be able to make Hamas give up its demands, its vision and its strategy," he emphasized.
Following the unprecedented attack by Hamas on 7 October, Israel announced the destruction of the radical Islamic Palestinian organization. Hundreds of Hamas fighters had attacked Israel and, according to Israeli figures, killed around 1140 people and abducted around 250 others as hostages in the Gaza Strip. In response, Israel has been attacking targets in the Gaza Strip in a massive military campaign ever since.
Since the beginning of the war, the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia, which is allied with Hamas, has also been attacking Israel almost daily from southern Lebanon. The Israeli army is responding to the attacks with increased air strikes on the neighboring country, where several Hamas representatives also live under the protection of Hezbollah.
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The mourners continued their procession, chanting and waving flags, as they approached the Shatila refugee settlement. AFP reported that the Palestinian flags, along with those of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, were prominently displayed.
The deadly attack on Al-Aruri and his Hamas colleagues occurred in a Beirut suburb on Tuesday. US sources suggested that Israel was responsible for the incident.
The grief-stricken crowd, filled with anger and determination, carried Al-Aruri's body towards burial, with gunshots echoing in the air. "The resistance will never waver," one solemn voice declared.
Hamas' political leader, Ismail Haniya, strongly condemned the assassination, calling it a "failed act" during a speech in Beirut. He emphasized that Israel would never succeed in forcing Hamas to abandon its goals.
Hamas retaliated following a controversial incident in October, leading to clashes that resulted in the deaths of around 1140 Israelis and the abduction of approximately 250 others. Israel responded with a relentless military campaign in the Gaza Strip.
Palestinians lamented the loss of Al-Aruri, a key figure in the Hamas organization and vice-chief of the radical Islamic group Harakat el-Mukawame el-Islamije. His death marked a significant blow to the Palestinian cause.
The pro-Iranian Hezbollah militia, an ally of Hamas, joined the ongoing conflict by launching attacks on Israel from their base in southern Lebanon. In response, the Israeli army escalated air strikes on neighboring targets.
According to reports, several Hamas representatives are currently residing in Lebanon under Hezbollah's protection, putting them in the line of fire in the escalating conflict between Israel and the Palestinian resistance movement.
Source: www.stern.de
