Statement on 105th anniversary of ill-fated Balfour Declaration
It has been 105 years since Britain issued its inauspicious Balfour Declaration in one of the most historically sinful moves taken against the Palestinian people. The declaration called for the es
Nov 02, 2022 10:21 am
It has been 105 years since Britain issued its inauspicious Balfour Declaration in one of the most historically sinful moves taken against the Palestinian people.
The declaration called for the establishment of a “national homeland for Jews in Palestine.” That was followed by heinous massacres committed against the Palestinians and schemes to dispossess the Palestinian people of their lands.
The Palestinian people still experience this declaration's catastrophic consequences to this day, which bear witness to such a historic injustice that perpetuated one of the longest-running settler-colonial occupations on a land that was and remains exclusively Palestinian.
This year’s anniversary comes as the Palestinian people everywhere remain steadfast in their struggle for their rights and the liberation of their homeland and holy sites. They have shown the world that they reject all false promises and void deals that attempt to grant the Israeli occupation legitimacy or sovereignty over their homeland and that their struggle will continue with all means possible until ending this colonial settlement project.
On the 105th anniversary of the so-called "Balfour Declaration", Hamas states the following:
First: The "Balfour Declaration", which was followed by political injustices, massacres against the Palestinian people and infringement upon their rights and historical homeland amid the continuous US bias towards the Israeli occupation and the double standards adopted by some Western nations against the Palestinian rights, will neither succeed in perpetuating the Zionist settler-colonial project nor will it wipe out the just Palestinian cause.
Second: Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque are the core of the Palestinian struggle against the Israeli occupation, which is trying to impose a new fait accompli at the Muslim sacred site through desecration and provocative raids. The Palestinian people, however, will continue to defend the mosque at any cost.
Third: All massacres, killings, and displacement schemes targeting the Palestinian people and their homeland since the "Balfour Declaration" will not be forgotten with the passage of time. We call for serious and effective international action to put an end to Israeli crimes and prosecute the Israeli occupation leaders as war criminals at the international court.
Fourth: The right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland, from which they were forced out, is an unwavering legitimate and legal right. We renew our call for protecting Palestinian refugees everywhere and providing them with a decent life by granting them their humanitarian rights until they return to their towns and villages in historic Palestine.
Fifth: Reversing the effects of the "Balfour Declaration" is a renewed historical responsibility and a national duty that the Arab and Muslim nations and the free peoples of the world have to take on. They have to put an end to the Israeli occupation's terrorism and isolate it internationally, and back the Palestinian people and their legitimate struggle until ending the occupation and establishing a fully sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Sixth: We renew our rejection of all forms of normalisation with the Israeli occupation. We urge all parties that have normalised ties with the Israeli occupation to backtrack on this wrongful move and support the Palestinian people and their legitimate fight to defend their homeland and holy sites.
Seventh: We call on the Palestinian people everywhere to keep up their freedom struggle against the Israeli occupation with all means possible and to hold on to their homeland, rights, holy sites, and national identity. We also urge the Arab and Muslim world to boost their support for the Palestinian people and their fight for their lands and right to self-determination.
Hamas Movement
Wednesday, 2 November 2022
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