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Fathi Ahmad Hamad (Arabic:فتحيأحمدحماد,also spelled Fathi Hammad;born 3 January 1961) is a Palestinian politician and member of the Hamas political bureau. He was Interior Minister in the Hamas-administered Gaza Strip from 2009 to 2014.
From 1988 to 1994,Hamad was in Israeli prison. He was also arrested three times by the Palestinian Authority and spent 2 years in Palestinian jails.[2]
Hamad became a Hamas-affiliated member of the Palestinian Legislative Council in 2006,representing his home town of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza. He also leads the Hamas Public Affairs Department and the chairman of al-Ribat Communications and Artistic Productions[3] - a Hamas-run company which produces Hamas's radio station,Al-Aqsa Voice Radio,its television station,Al-Aqsa TV and its bi-weekly newspaper,The Message.[4][5] Under his direction,the station broadcast children's show Tomorrow's Pioneers,which received heavy criticism for its antisemitic and Islamist content. Hamad defended the contents of the show,stating "it does not violate any moral or professional standard."[6]
In November 2009,Waad,a Gaza charity headed by Hamad,offered a $1.4 million bounty to any Arab citizen of Israel who abducts an Israeli soldier. While Palestinian militant groups have frequently called on Arab-Israelis to capture soldiers,this marked the first time money had been offered.[9]
In September 2016,the U.S. Department of State named Hamad a Specially Designated Terrorist,outlawing U.S. citizens and companies from doing business with him and freezing his assets in areas under U.S. jurisdiction.[10][8] The designation named Hamad as the founder and director of Hamad's Al-Aqsa TV,which the U.S. said aired "programs designed to recruit children to become Hamas armed fighters and suicide bombers." In response,Hamad told the Washington Post that he "was proud that I managed to anger America."[2]
He provides funding and military instruction to the West Bank branch of Hamas,founded by prisoners released in the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange. According to Palestinian officials,Hamad was behind a cell planning suicide bombings and other attacks in Abu Dis.[8]
Views
Hamad is viewed in Gaza as a powerful,but extreme,loose cannon,who operates independently of and kept at arm's length by Hamas. He is well known as one of the most radical figures in Hamas.[2][8] Hamad was a central figure opposing reconciliation with the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority.
A speech made by Hamad,broadcast on Al-Aqsa TV in February 2008,has been used as evidence by Israel and others that Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups make use of human shields.[11][12][13][14] In an interview which aired on Al-Aqsa TV on 14 December 2010 (as translated by MEMRI),Hamad stated that Hamas receives support.[15]
In a speech broadcast on Egyptian Al-Helma TV on 23 March 2012,Hamad condemned Egypt over the fuel shortage in the Gaza Strip,and stated,"Half of the Palestinians are Egyptians and the other half are Saudis."[16]
In March 2018,it was reported that Hamad is a senior Hamas official who opposes reconciliation with Fatah,and urges a resumption of war against Israel. He has been implicated in the assassination attempt on prime minister Rami Hamdallah.[17][18]
↑ "'A Fatwa for Genocide' – Wiesenthal center slams Hamas charter". The Jerusalem Post. 14 July 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2020. The Simon Wiesenthal Center slammed Hamas in a press release on Sunday, pointing out that the terrorist group's charter contains "a Fatwa for genocide" and the statement by senior Hamas official Fathi Hammad, who called on Palestinians living around the world to "go out and slaughter and kill Jews."
↑ Rasgon, Adam. "Hamas official walks back call to Palestinian Diaspora to kill 'Jews everywhere'". Times of Israel. Retrieved 16 July 2019. But our brothers [in the diaspora] are still preparing. They are trying to prepare. They are warming up. A long time has passed with them warming up. All of you 7 million Palestinians abroad, enough of the warming up. You have Jews everywhere and we must attack every Jew on the globe by way of slaughter and killing, if God permits. Enough of the warming up
Interior Minister of Gaza Strip April 2009 – June 2014
Succeededby
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