The Palestinian resistance movements Hamas and Islamic Jihad have strongly condemned the “horrific massacre” committed by Israel in the al-Mawasi refugee camp near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, blaming the international community for the continuation of the regime’s genocidal war in the besieged enclave.
Islamic Jihad made the remarks in a statement on Saturday, after at least 90 people were killed and more than 300 others wounded by Israeli air strikes on the area designated by the regime as a so-called “safe” zone.
“The horrific massacre committed by the Zionist entity in al-Mawasi near Khan Younis is an insistence on continuing the war of extermination against our people,” the group said.
It went on to say that this massacre came after ten months of global inaction and failure to stop the brutal war and lift the blockade on hundreds of thousands trapped by violence and starvation.
The Islamic Jihad also noted that Israel’s claims of targeting senior Palestinian resistance figures “prove its premeditated intention to commit this crime” in Gaza’s al-Mawasi.
“This crime confirms that the occupation has disregarded all international norms and covenants,” it added.
The resistance group further held the administration of US President Joe Biden responsible for this heinous crime, saying Washington is complicit in Israeli crimes because it provides the entity with all different types of support.
Hamas has also condemned Israeli airstrikes on al-Mawasi in a statement on Saturday, labeling it a dangerous escalation in a series of unprecedented crimes and massacres in the history of warfare, carried out by “the new Nazis”.
Hamas went on to say that this heinous massacre perpetrated by the Israeli military is a clear confirmation of the regime’s commitment to its campaign of genocide against the Palestinian people.
“This is evidenced by the repeated and deliberate targeting of innocent civilians in tents, displacement centers, and residential neighborhoods, committing the most heinous crimes against them, without regard for calls to cease targeting innocent civilians or adherence to any laws of war designed to protect them," the group said.
Hamas further denounced as “false” the Israeli claim that the attack targeted leaders of the group, describing it just a way “to cover up the extent of the horrific massacre”.
The resistance group also criticized the flagrant disregard for international law and treaties, as well as widespread violations against innocent civilians, which it said would not have continued without the support provided by the US to the Israeli regime.
This support includes covering up its crimes and providing political and military backing, thereby thwarting international justice from fulfilling its role in addressing these crimes, making it fully complicit in them, it added.
'US administration responsible for heinous massacre'
Meanwhile, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for President Mahmoud Abbas, also blamed the US administration for the heinous massacre in al-Mawasi.
Abu Rudeineh said that the US "persists in violating all international legitimacy resolutions by continuously providing financial and military support” to Israel.
He also pointed out that "without blind and biased US support, this occupation would not be able to continue its bloody crimes against the Palestinian people.”
Abu Rudeineh further called on the UN Security Council and the international community "to intervene immediately to stop these bloody massacres and compel the occupation authorities to immediately cease all these actions that violate all international legitimacy resolutions."
Palestinian Foreign Ministry calls on Israel’s allies ‘to awaken their conscience’
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry also condemned the Israeli “massacres” in Gaza’s al-Mawasi in a statement on X, calling on “the states supporting Israel to awaken their conscience and morals, and to stop obstructing international efforts to end the genocidal war” in Gaza.
In a statement, Sufyan Qudah, the spokesman for Jordan's Foreign Ministry also said the kingdom condemns Israel’s attack on al-Mawasi camp and its continued violation of international law, stressing the need for the international community to act to bring an end to Palestinian suffering.