TEHRAN - Hamas has said the Palestinians were “victorious” in the latest confrontation with Israel thanks to the support provided by Iran.

In an interview with Press TV on Monday, Hamas representative in Iran Khaled al-Qaddoumi said rockets fired from Gaza were in response to Israeli atrocities against Palestinians at al-Aqsa Mosque and the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in Jerusalem al-Quds.

Asked about who was the victor in the latest confrontation, al-Qaddoumi said, “It is not the matter of who is the victor. It’s the matter of how much the resistance fighters managed to thwart the goals of the Israeli regime and to convey the message of the Palestinian people to the international community."

“The Zionist regime's narrative is starting to be isolated,” he said, noting that there are Jews in the U.S. state of New York who oppose the Israeli atrocities as well as European nations who are questioning their governments’ support for the Israeli entity.

“Yes, we were the victors,” he finally said. 

“Israel announced a unilateral ceasefire after the rocket fire from Gaza eroded the morale of the Israeli army officers and left “70 percent” of Israelis hiding underground.”

Al-Qaddoumi also dismissed the casualty figures given by the Israeli authorities, saying they were “not accurate”, and that Israeli fatalities were higher than the official numbers.
Israel said 12 people were killed by rockets fired from Gaza.

Foreign media outlets have said the firing of rockets at major areas in Israel have demoralized the settlers and the army. 

Iranian military figures have likened the victory of resistance forces against Israel to Hezbollah’s win against the Israeli Army in the 33-day war in 2006. Hezbollah’s victory shattered the myth in the Arab public opinion that Israel was invincible. 

According to al Jazeera, after Israel announced to unconditional ceasefire, thousands of people in Gaza and the Palestinian territories poured onto the streets to celebrate the ceasefire, waving flags and flashing ‘V’ signs for victory.

The ceasefire took effect at 2:00am on Friday (23:00 GMT on Thursday).

On to the achievements made by the resistance forces, the Hamas representative said they managed to attack “at least six airbases” in the occupied Palestinian territories, including Hatzerim airbase, as well as a battery of the Iron Dome missile system.

He said Israel announced a unilateral ceasefire after the rocket fire from Gaza eroded the morale of the Israeli army officers and left “70 percent” of Israelis hiding underground.

Referring to the barrage of rockets fired at Israel during the latest confrontation, al-Qaddoumi said the Israeli siege imposed on Gaza has helped the resistance fighters to find innovative ways to defend themselves.

He also attributed the Palestinians victory to the support provided by Iran to the Palestinian resistance, including rocket technology.

“This technology has been transferred [to us] also from other brothers in the Muslim Ummah,” he said, adding Iran “was on the top of them”.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry and top officials, including the Judiciary chief, parliament speaker, senior advisor to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the Armed Force Chief of Staff, have congratulated the Palestinian nation for succeeding to defeat the Israeli regime.

“The heroes of the nation of Ibrahim (PBUH) and Mohammad (PBUH) in oppressed Palestine rubbed the noses of the Zionists, who are the greatest enemies of God and humanity in our time. Iran will not hesitate to fully support the oppressed people of Palestine,” Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf tweeted.

Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raeisi said, “Resistance missiles exposed the fragile security of the Zionist Israeli regime more than ever, and the strong will of the Palestinians overcame the Zionists’ multi-layered defense systems, turning the idea of Israel's invincibility into a baseless assumption. Under these circumstances, the rootless government of Tel Aviv saw the continuation of the war as a further scandal inside and outside the occupied territories, and by surrendering to the resistance of the Palestinian people, took the lead in accepting the ceasefire.” 

Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior advisor to Leader of the Islamic Revolution and former foreign minister, said the historic victory proved the false aura of the occupying Zionist regime. Reiterating Iran's decisive policy toward the Palestine issue, Velayati said Palestine is the Islamic world's most important issue and this is unchangeable. He also said Intifada has changed the balance of power to the detriment of Israel.

Iran’s Armed Forces Chief of Staff  Major General Mohammad Baqeri also said the battle and confrontation of the Palestinian Mujahedeen against the occupiers of Jerusalem, which after 12 days led to the unilateral ceasefire by the Zionists and the victory of the oppressed Palestinian people in the geography of the Intifada, revealed that the “glass of life of the shameful occupiers” has come under the will of the Palestinian Mujahedeen, and it is the Islamic resistance that determines the fate of the battle.

Palestinian resistance fighters in Gaza succeeded to fire hundreds of rockets at different parts of the occupied territories despite the fact that the coastal strip has been under the Israeli blockade since June 2007. 

PA/PA