Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week pointed to the overtly hostile rhetoric of Hamas coupled with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas’ efforts to reconcile with the terror group as the primary reason that true, lasting peace is currently unachievable.

Over the weekend, Hamas marked its 25th anniversary with a gala event in Gaza City. In attendance was overall Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal, who usually resides in Damascus. Speaking before hundreds of thousands of Gazans, Mashaal declared:

“Palestine is our land and nation from the (Mediterranean) sea to the (Jordan) river, from the north to the south, and we will not cede even one inch of it.”

The Hamas leader recently gave an interview to CNN in which Mashaal stated that he was ready to accept a Palestinian state in the pre-1967 borders. His words in Gaza this past weekend are further evidence that it is impossible to trust what Palestinian leaders say in English, and it is their pronouncements in Arabic that must be given greatest weight.

Mashaal went on to insist that political, diplomatic and legal efforts to achieve control of the land must be coupled with violence. He explained that all non-violent methods are “senseless in the absence of resistance,” which is how the Palestinians define their acts of terrorism against Israelis.

Read the whole thing via israel today | Israel News | Netanyahu: This is why true peace remains unachievable – israel today | Israel News.

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