In an interview aired Sunday by Al Jazeera, Dr. Khalil al-Hayya, chief negotiator for the Hamas terrorist organization, described the October 7, 2023, massacre as the "inevitable outcome" of decades of what he called occupation and injustice, while defending the group's actions and calling for international prosecution of Israeli leaders.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, al-Hayya said the attack, which he referred to as the "Al-Aqsa Flood," was a direct consequence of what he described as 77 years of Israeli "occupation," including the denial of Palestinian rights, the siege of Gaza, and actions at the Temple Mount. "It was the inevitable outcome of seventy-seven years of occupation, of an occupier that refuses to grant even our most basic rights," he stated.
He accused Israel of seeking to "Judaize Jerusalem," of introducing laws to "divide Al-Aqsa Mosque and build the so-called Temple," and of imposing a blockade on Gaza for nearly two decades. "This is an occupier that denies the existence of a Palestinian people," al-Hayya claimed.
"Despite all the pain, the losses, the martyrs, the wounded, the prisoners, and the destruction of homes and infrastructure," al-Hayya said, "that operation (October 7th) moved the Palestinian cause into a new phase."
He asserted that the October 7 events had "shattered the myth of the Zionist entity," which he labeled a "fascist, Zionist state that believes neither in human rights nor in coexistence," and argued that the operation sparked a global "awakening" against Israel. "There has been a revolution - an awakening - across the globe, a moral and intellectual revolt against Zionism," he said.
Al-Hayya acknowledged the heavy toll the attack and its aftermath took on Gaza and the group itself but insisted that Hamas "acted on its convictions and did what duty demanded." He added, "The cost was enormous, yes - but we hope that the reward for these sacrifices will be just as great."
"We don’t want our people to live under endless suffering, but we do want them to live in peace and security, within a Palestinian state for all of us," he said, asserting that the events had returned the Palestinian cause to the forefront of international attention.
He further called on the international community not to stop at "sympathy or outrage," but to act: "We want the world to prosecute the leaders of the occupation for their crimes, to accelerate the creation of a Palestinian state, to ensure the return of refugees, and to let our people determine their own destiny on their land."
In recounting his personal experiences, al-Hayya said he had survived attempted assassinations during Israeli operations in both Iran and Qatar. "That building was hit; we felt the pain of losing our comrades. We were close to death more than once - in Tehran and then again in Doha - but by God’s will, and thanks to our security discipline and Qatar’s security system, we survived."
He concluded by urging the Arab world to continue supporting what he called the struggle: "Now it’s upon the world - and the Arab nation - to continue this work, to honor the blood and sacrifices of our people."