Hamas' student organization, the Islamic Bloc, is very active in the Palestinian universities in the West Bank, where it openly incites armed struggle and terrorist activity against Israel.[1] Recently, Islamic Bloc members held mass-events at several West Bank universities to mark the 35th anniversary of Hamas' founding. At one of these events, which took place on December 11, 2022 at Al-Quds University in Abu Dis, a village in the Jerusalem area, students marched through the campus carrying flags and emblems of Hamas and of its military wing, the 'Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades, the emblem of the Lions' Den militia, and signs bearing slogans such as "resistance," "I sow fear" and portraits of martyrs. The event was attended by young children.[2]
Young boy holding up Hamas flag at the Al-Quds University event (image: T.me/kotlaalquds, December 11, 2022)
In a pre-recorded speech played at the event, Hamas' spokesman for Jerusalem affairs Muhammad Hamada warned that "the [young] generation of the resistance is coming like a raging torrent to liberate Jerusalem, and no occupier or invader will stop it."
A statement issued by the Islamic Bloc on the occasion of the anniversary asserted that Hamas would not stray from the path of jihad and resistance, whatever the number of victims may be, until it liberates all of Palestine from the River to the Sea.
This report reviews the event held by the Islamic Bloc at Al-Quds University.
Address By Hamas Spokesman At Al-Quds University Event: "The [Young] Generation Of The Resistance Is Coming Like A Raging Torrent To Liberate Jerusalem"
As stated, in a recorded address played at the event, Hamas' spokesman for Jerusalem affairs Muhammad Hamada warned that "the [young] generation of the resistance is coming like a raging torrent to liberate Jerusalem, and no occupier or invader will stop it." He also praised Al-Quds University, calling it "the university of martyrs and resistance fighters" and urging the members of the Islamic Bloc to continue in the footsteps of "the heroic martyrs ['Adel] 'Awadallah and [Mahmoud] Abu Hunoud."[3] The goal of the resistance and of the struggle of the people in the West Bank, he added, is "to liberate Palestine from the River to the Sea and restore Jerusalem to the Palestinian people, as a unified and purged capital city."[4]
In March Held On Campus, Attended By Masked Fighters And Young Children, Participants Carried Signs Bearing Portraits Of Hamas Military Commanders, Emblems Of Lions' Den Militia
As stated, as part of the event marking the 35th anniversary of Hamas' founding, the Islamic Bloc also held a march on the Al-Quds University campus, at which participants carried flags and emblems of Hamas and its military wing, portraits of Hamas officials, such as its founder Sheikh Ahmad Yassin and Al-Qassam commander Ahmad Al-Ja'bari, and portraits of the late PLO chairman and Palestinian Authority (PA) president Yasser 'Arafat.
The following are photos from the march.[5]
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Several activists carried words that make up the Islamic Bloc's slogan, "Knowledge, Resistance, Excellence."
Conspicuous at the march were emblems of the Lions' Den militia and of Hamas and its military wing. A poster hung in the hall where the event took place bore the caption "I sow fear."
The event was attended by young children bearing Hamas flags.
An Islamic Bloc poster showed children dressed in military uniforms bearing mock guns, and was captioned "The Children of Today Are Tomorrow's Liberators."
Islamic Bloc In The West Bank: We Will Not Stray From The Path Of Jihad Until Palestine Is Liberated From The River To The Sea
On December 14, alongside the main event held in Gaza to mark Hamas' 35th anniversary, the Islamic Bloc at the West Bank universities issued a statement that highlighted Hamas' commitment to the armed struggle against Israel and also criticized the PA for the recent wave of arrests targeting Islamic Bloc activists. The statement said: "…With a flood of martyrs, prisoners, wounded and resistance that grows from day to day, Hamas, on the 35th anniversary of its founding, is advancing towards the liberation of all of Palestine from the Sea to the River, along with its [Palestinian] people and its [Islamic] nation. Thirty-five years of giving, resistance, sacrifice and defiance. [Hamas] never bargained and never relinquished a single grain of our pure soil. [Over the years] it sacrificed its leaders, its front-line fighters and the best of its men and soldiers, who were martyred. It will not weaken and will not abandon its people despite the aggression, pressure and persecution from within and without [i.e., by the PA and by Israel].
"O free men, O our resistance-fighting people, who are the haven and the fuel of the resistance. The founding of Hamas was a natural continuation of our people's path of struggle and resistance, which has been ongoing since the British occupation of Palestine… On the 35th anniversary of the blessed founding of our movement, we proudly uphold our people's path of resistance, sacrifice and martyrdom, and beseech [Allah] to have mercy on the souls of our martyred founders and leaders, chief of them the jihad-fighting sheikh and founding Imam, the martyr Ahmad Yassin, and all our pure-hearted martyred leaders. We also mention our martyred compatriots from the [other] resistance factions, such as the martyred commander Yasser 'Arafat Abu 'Amar; the martyred commander Fathi Shqaqi [founder of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad]; the martyred commander Abu 'Ali Mustafa [secretary-general of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine]; the martyred commander 'Omar Al-Qassem [of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine], and an endless roster of [other] heroes who decorate Palestine's procession of martyrs…
"Our free and proud people, on the 35th anniversary of [Hamas'] founding, the PA security apparatuses insist on continuing the policy of oppression, exclusion and persecution [against us], as part of the policy of security coordination with the occupation. They are currently engaged in a mad operation of arresting Hamas and Islamic Bloc members and of summoning them for questioning, in all the cities, villages and [refugee] camps [of the West Bank]… We in the Islamic Bloc, the student organization of the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, stress on the anniversary of the blessed founding [of our movement] that these depraved actions will not frighten us… We shall not stray from the path of jihad and resistance, no matter what the number of victims may be. [This] path, blazed by the blood and sacrifice of our martyred leaders, is the path we believe will lead us to our goal: liberating the land and [its] holy sites and expelling the oppressive occupier from every inch of it. Lastly, we reiterate our commitment to our Palestine, to every martyr and prisoner, to every gun[man] of the resistance who raised the banner of defending our people and whose compass has never shifted to serving the occupation. [We are committed to] jihad until [achieving] victory or martyrdom…"[6]
Graphic produced by the Islamic Bloc in the West Bank: "We Are Coming to Jerusalem like a Raging Torrent" (Kutla.ps, December 14, 2022)
[1] See e.g., MEMRI reports: Special Dispatch No. 10362 - Praise For Terrorist Yahya 'Ayyash, Initiator Of Hamas' Suicide Bombings, At Palestinian University And On Social Media - 12/07/22; Special Dispatch No. 9683 - Defying Ban On Military Activity On Campus, Students At Palestinian Authority Birzeit University Hold Military Parades With Mock Rockets, Explosive Belts - 12/16/21; Inquiry & Analysis No. 1497 - Students Vs Administration: Crisis At Birzeit University In Palestinian Authority Following Ban On Military-Style Activity On Campus - 01/15/20.
[2] For more on the involvement of children in Hamas events of this sort, see Special Dispatch No. 9643 - Hamas Military Exhibition Showcases Weapons, Allows Children, Students To Simulate Liberating The Al-Aqsa Mosque, Attack Israeli Settlements With Drones - 11/18/21.
T.me/kotlaalquds, December 11, 2022.
[3] 'Adel 'Awadallah studied mathematics at Al-Quds University in the 1980s, but did not finish his degree. He became one of the top commanders of Hamas' military wing in the West Bank, and his brother 'Imad served as his chief assistant. The bothers were responsible for many terrorist attacks in which Israelis were murdered, and were killed in a shootout with the Israeli armed forces in September 1998. Their successor was Mahmoud Abu Hunoud, a graduate of Al-Quds University's shari'a faculty. He was responsible for many shooting and suicide attacks in which dozens of Israelis were murdered, and was killed by the Israeli army in a November 2001 airstrike.
[4] Kutla.ps, December 11, 2022.
[5] T.me/kotlaalquds, December 11-12, 18, 2022.
[6] Kutla.ps, December 14, 2022.
