GHOUL, HAMAS: EGYPTIAN COURT RULE BLACKLISTING QASSAM POLITICIZED

Mohamed Faraj al-Ghoul. (Photo: PIC)" width="317" height="219" /> Head of the Change and Reform Bloc, Mohamed Faraj al-Ghoul. (Photo: PIC)

Gaza, 13 Rabi’ul Akhir 1436/3 February 2015 (MINA) – The Egyptian court rule blacklisting Ezzedine al-Qassam Resistance Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, as a terror group is “politicized by excellence and has nothing to do with law,” Head of the Change and Reform Bloc, Mohamed Faraj al-Ghoul, said Monday.

“The decision violates the Arab joint defense pact that stipulates defending the Arab Nation,” he said. Ghoul further highlighted that “The Palestinian resistance is legitimate under international law,” The Palestinian Information Center (PIC) quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

He cited one of the articles of the Arab pact as legitimizing armed resistance against foreign invasion and aggression as a means to restore peoples’ freedom and self-determination.

Ghoul spoke out against the state of confusion and hastiness with which the court rule was issued just a couple of weeks after another decision released by the same court declared it lacked appropriate jurisdiction to consider anti-Hamas lawsuits.

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“We have to pay tribute to, rather than lashing out at, al-Qassam Brigades who stood their ground against the Israeli colonizer,” he said.

“Al-Qassam lies at the heart of every Egyptian, every Arab, and every Muslim. It has always stood as the bulletproof vest for all Palestinians and Muslims. Such a biased decision should have never seen the day,” he added.

According to Ghoul, “the issue serves neither Egyptians’ nor Palestinians’ interests. It only fosters Israel’s schemes.”

The official urged Egypt to reconsider branding Hamas’s armed wing a terrorist organization, pointing out the previous constructive coordination between Egyptians and al-Qassam Brigades in setting the stage for the historic Wafa al-Ahrar prisoner swap deal

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Senior Hamas official Basem Naim, meanwhile, called on Egypt to rescind the “injudicious” court rule.

“What is required of Egypt right now is to drop the decision so as to avoid any adverse retorts and to preserve Egypt’s role as a broker party in the Palestinian-Israeli truce talks,” Naim told the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

He said such a “politicized” decision has come as a result of the incitement perpetrated by Egyptian media outlets.

He called for a firm Palestinian political stance to be adopted regarding the issue, vowing that Hamas will never give instigators any room to drag the group into a conflict with their Egyptian brothers and sisters. (T/P011/R04)

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Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)

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