Shaath: Israel's madness will not deter us

Expressing sharp criticism of IDF response to Thursday's terror attacks, senior Fatah official Nabil Shaath says Israel bears full responsibility for escalation, consequences: 'This is war crime'

Elior Levy|Published: 08.19.11 , 13:58

Following Israel's assassination of two senior members of the Popular Resistance Committees' military wing on Thursday, senior Fatah official Nabil Shaath expressed sharp criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza.

According to Shaath, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is interested in military escalation in the Strip in a bid to divert attention from the socio-economic crisis in Israel.

Escalation in south:

He further accused Israel of seeking regional escalation in order to torpedo Palestinian efforts vis-à-vis the United Nations in September. "Israel's madness will not deter the Palestinian leadership from appealing to the UN, the opposite is true, and it will push the leadership to work harder in its efforts."

In a press release on Friday Shaath alleged that Israel was looking for an excuse to carry out collective punishment against the Palestinian people saying: "This is a war crime aimed at causing efforts by the Palestinian Authority and other factions to avoid armed conflict to fail."

Shaath has called on the international community to act swiftly to stop what he calls "Israeli aggression". He further noted that Israel bears full responsibility for what is happening and the consequences that could drag the entire region into the unknown.

The Fatah Foreign Relations Commission stated that since the escalation, Shaath has held deliberations with foreign officials "in order to explain the truth about what is happening and explain the aims behind Israel's aggression against Gaza".

The Hamas interior ministry in Gaza announced that it is prepared for any new Israeli military escalation in the Gaza Strip. Ministry spokesman Ihab al-Rasin said that "the interior ministry and the security forces are prepared to deal with any Israeli escalation.

"In spite of the occupation's attempt to bring us to our knees – we will not raise the white flag. We promise our people that we are not afraid of the threats and will remain steadfast on our land."