The Palestinian resistance is legal
[Official Hamas website]
www.qassam.ps/interview-2380-The_Palestinian_resistance_is_legal.html
08-02-2010,12:40
Judge: Deyaa Edeen Al Madhoun

"Head of the central committee for Documentation and Pursual of Zionist war
criminals"

a.. Resistance recognizes the meaning of commitment to international law
b.. Public opinion in most countries began to change in support of the
resistance
c.. The Zionist entity transferred its civilians to dangerous areas
d.. Palestinian resistance has exercised its legitimate right under
commitment to the rules of international humanitarian law
In an exclusive interview with Al Qassam website, judge Deyaa Al Madhoun,
head of the central committee for documentation and Pursual of Zionist war
criminals, confirmed that the military operations performed by the
Palestinian resistance are legal tools in defending our people against the
Zionist aggression according to the international law.

Here. the full text of the interview:

How would you describe the legal status of the Palestinian resistance
according to the international law?

At first, I want to say that the international laws ensure the Palestinian
people to resist against the continuous aggression of the Zionist occupation
to restore their stolen rights and liberate their home, Palestine.

The military operations performed by the Palestinian resistance are legal
tools in defending our people against the Zionist aggression according to
the text of the General Assembly of the United Nations No. (5 / 2621) which
says: "The occupied people has the right to struggle by various means
against colonial Powers which suppress their aspirations for freedom and
independence".

The General Assembly of the United Nations has stressed in more than one
resolution on the right of peoples struggle for independence, and freedom
from occupation and foreign domination. Indeed, the United Nations Charter,
Article (51) consider that any state has a natural right to defend itself
if they were exposed to armed aggression, and the last Zionist aggression on
the Gaza Strip is the best model for defining the crime of aggression from
the legal and international perspective.

The legal basis in international law established that no legitimate defense
against the legitimate defense, and as long as our defense and our practice
of resistance is legitimate and in accordance with international law, the
occupation claim of defending himself is considered as crimes and illegal
acts in international law.

If the resistance is legitimate, Why does the west call it terror?

The International law established rules for controlling operations of war as
it warned from targeting civilians and civilian facilities by any of the
parties. The Zionist occupation had succeeded to use these legal rules in
his favor in the past; it is still fabricating in front of the world public
opinion and the West in particular that the Palestinian resistance is a
criminal groups seek to kill civilians, and to kill Jews in a racist manner,
and that the Palestinian resistance seeks to destabilize the security and
stability in the region.

The fact that we are an occupied people exercise our legitimate right to
resist occupation and to defend ourselves was hidden because of our weakness
in the media field, so the West believed the Zionist story. But, I can say
that in the era of satellite and free media, in which we live, a lot have
understood the correct message of resistance and the message of the
Palestinian people, and it has become clear who is the victim and who is the
victimizer.

Observing the international reports, I think that the public opinion in most
countries began to change to support the resistance. This is what we have
observed after the recent aggression on Gaza.

If we talked about the aggression on the Gaza Strip, Did the resistance
factions in Gaza took this law in consideration, although it is not a
regular army?

The Palestinian resistance had confirmed in more than one situation that it
abide by the rules of international law and it fires rockets to military
objectives such as tanks bases, military airports and occupying forces
sites, and thus the resistance understand the meaning of commitment to
international law.

The occupation claimed that 3 civilians were killed by the rockets of the
resistance; this claim refuted by two things:

a.. Despite all efforts to avoid harming citizens, the rockets of the
resistance are inaccurate missiles in striking targets, and therefore it may
miss its target little bit. This is what happens in all the armed clashes.
And if 3 civilians were killed - so to claim - during the 22-day during
which hundreds of rockets were fired, this confirms that the civilians were
not the target of these missiles; otherwise, dozens might had been killed.
a.. The occupation claimed that the areas hit by the rockets of the
resistance is part of the Zionist entity, the international law has another
point of view, where Oslo agreement is not considered as a final solution to
a final demarcation of the border, so we depend on United Nations
resolutions despite our reservations on the resolution, but in accordance
with that, all towns which were hit by rocket fire are within the boundaries
of the Arab state according to the partition resolution. Here, we see that
"the Zionist entity" had committed a crime by transferring its civilian
population to areas of conflict.
Does the a report of Judge Goldstone have any risk on resistance?

The report of the UN mission headed by Judge Goldstone is one of the
strongest reports condemning the Zionist occupation forces of committing war
crimes. The report has strengthened the charges with evidences in more than
500 pages, and at the same time the resistance was acquitted of allegations
that it used civilians as human shields. In addition, it emphasized that
police officers who have been targeted in the first day of the aggression
were civilians, and that targeting them is a flagrant violation of
international humanitarian law and a war crime.

However, I have some reservations on the last ten papers in which the report
refers that the resistance may have committed war crimes by targeting
civilians, but these accusations were devoid of evidence and legal basis and
would fail before the rules of international law.

Under the threat of a new aggression on the Gaza Strip, Does that mean that
the Zionists are not deterred, despite having committed war crimes in the
aggression?

We are still in the beginning of their path in the prosecution of leaders
and soldiers of the Zionist occupation, we are aware when we started down
this road obstacles and drilling us of double standards, and disruption of
the international balance of power, which favored the occupation until the
moment, we are all appreciate that the question of prosecution is cumulative
and will be achieved gradually. The world must realize that the feeling that
the criminal occupier outside the circle of accountability will be tempted
to commit more atrocities and crimes and put an end to political impunity
will be enhanced for the rule of international law and the guarantor for the
deployment of international justice and emphasizing the remedy victims of
aggression, and finally will be a deterrent to anyone with the same question
of international crimes.

Here, I think we have begun the first step and I think it was a successful
move, but I think it has achieved part of our goal, but we will make more
effort and time in order to deter the occupier and criminals from committing
more atrocities and crimes against the Palestinian people, but will endeavor
to describe our children who are victims of aggression and emphasize their
right to compensation.