During a CNN interview on Saturday, Hamas’ senior official, Osama Hamdan, abruptly ended the discussion when asked whether the group takes responsibility for civilian casualties in Gaza. This sudden termination followed questions about whether Hamas regretted its October 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Israeli civilians.
Meanwhile, Gaza Health Ministry officials have reported that the ongoing conflict has claimed the lives of 40,000 Palestinians, with the majority being civilians.
In response, Hamdan accused Sciutto, who was reporting from Tel Aviv, of taking Israel’s side in the decades-long conflict.
“Well, it seems to me you are giving the Israelis the right to kill Palestinians when you ask if we feel regret for what Israel has done,” Hamdan said. “You have to understand that Israel has been killing the Palestinians for the last 76 years.”
The two then went back on forth as Hamdan accused Sciutto of only viewing the conflict through “Israeli eyes.”
“You didn’t see the Israelis killing thousands of Palestinians in those 20 years,” Hamdan said, claiming Sciutto wasn’t knowledgable of the thousands of Palestinians who were killed in the 2008 and 2014 wars in Gaza.
“Actually, I was here in 2014, and in 2008,” Sciutto said, adding that the network had covered Palestinian civilian deaths “quite closely.”
“What you’re saying is factually not true. I was here for both of those conflicts. My question is does Hamas accept any responsibility for the deaths of its own people in Gaza?” Sciutto said.
New video released from Oct 7th showing Hamas kidnapping of Aryeh Zalmanovich, 85, who was executed in Hamas captivity back in November. The crowed in Gaza is seen hitting him relentlessly.
The picture was taken by Hamas before he was executed.
May his memory be a blessing pic.twitter.com/UxEGPWPE8o
— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) August 17, 2024
Hamdan and Sciutto engaged in a heated exchange, frequently interrupting each other as the CNN correspondent attempted to get a clear response to his question.
The conflict, which began on October 7 with a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, has led to significant casualties on both sides. Gaza’s Health Ministry reports that over 40,000 Palestinians have died since the war started ten months ago, with Israel’s offensive also resulting in 92,401 injuries and displacing more than 85% of Gaza’s population. The ministry’s figures do not differentiate between civilians and militants.
I pressed senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan on whether Hamas accepts any responsibility for the loss of civilian life in Gaza, which residents have told CNN they believe it does. He wouldn’t answer and instead took me on a history lesson of events he didn’t know I witnessed… pic.twitter.com/L3UUzHrVPb
— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) August 17, 2024
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