Hamas Official Mohammad Nazzal On Israeli Demand To Abolish Hamas Presence In Gaza After The War: The U.S. Also Refused To Recognize The Taliban But Had To Succumb To Its Rule Of Afghanistan

Mohammad Nazzal, a member of the Hamas political bureau reacted on a January 28, 2024 show aired on Al-Jazeera Network (Qatar) to Israel's condition that Hamas presence would not be allowed in Gaza after the war is over. He said that the U.S. refused to allow any Taliban presence in Afghanistan, nor would it negotiate with it, however, 20 years later the Taliban is ruling Afghanistan, and the U.S. is negotiating with it. Nazzal continued to say that Hamas will not allow anyone to impose their conditions on it, and he added: "The Hamas movement is present in the Gaza Strip whether the enemy likes it or not."

Interviewer: "What about the future of the Gaza Strip? If one of Israel's conditions is that there would be no Hamas presence in Gaza after the war – will you accept that?"

Mohammad Nazzal: "The U.S. used to say that it would not negotiate with the Taliban in Afghanistan, and that it would not agree to the existence of the Taliban in Afghanistan. I believe that after 20 years, they were forced to negotiate with the Taliban, and were even forced to accept the facts on the ground, and the existence of the Taliban movement as the ruler of the Republic of Afghanistan.

"Therefore, the 'nays' that they are throwing our way, as part of their psychological warfare on the one hand, and as part of the negotiation on the other hand, are not included in Hamas's lexicon. Hamas will not allow anyone to impose their conditions and their will on it. The Hamas movement is present in the Gaza Strip, Whether the enemy likes it or not."