The terrorists of Hamas and their allies celebrated the anniversary of the October 7, 2023, atrocity as a “historic and honorable milestone” in the Palestinian “struggle.”
Hamas hailed its murderous attack on Israeli civilians, which it calls “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood,” as an “extraordinary military achievement in planning, execution, and strategic deception.”
“The past three years have exposed the true nature of the occupation and its ‘Nazi tendencies’ for waging a genocidal war and committing horrific massacres,” the Palestinian terrorist group said.
“Our people are defending themselves, their land, their rights, and their holy sites, while upholding their right to resist the occupation until it ends, and a free, independent Palestinian state is established,” the statement insisted.
Hamas lionized the planners and executors of the October 7 atrocity who were subsequently killed by Israeli forces, including Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, as “guiding beacons” for the Palestinian people on their path to “liberation and return.”
Conversely, Hamas demanded that bodies like the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice should arrest and prosecute Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for “war crimes” and “genocide.”
Hamas’ ally in Lebanon, the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah, also celebrated the October 7 attack as a “courageous, distinctive, justified, and legitimate” operation that “shook the world.”
Hezbollah also praised October 7 as a strategic success, arguing that the immense devastation visited upon Palestinian terrorists by the Israeli military was dwarfed by the “political impact” of the Hamas massacre.
The Lebanese terrorist gang claimed Israel and its allies, including the United States, had lost favor around the world, while the “narrative of the Al-Aqsa Flood” has prevailed, as witnessed by pro-Palestinian “uprisings” in Western cities and universities.
Hezbollah also argued that Israel’s failure to eliminate Hamas completely was a strategic defeat for the Israelis, who underestimated the “resilience” of the Palestinians, and would soon be swept away by the “surging wave” of their “resistance.”
Israeli parliamentarian Simcha Rothman, chair of the Knesset’s Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee, said on Wednesday that he hopes the first indictments of Palestinians accused of participating in the October 7 massacre will be handed down early next year.
Rothman said he hoped the process could be expedited because “the Israeli public is waiting, demanding, and entitled” to speedy trials for the roughly 300 Palestinian suspects in custody. A special military tribunal was empowered in May to manage the trials, but many details remain to be cleared up, including staffing for the prosecution and venues where the trial can occur.
“The very important mission, for the sake of the blood of our sisters and brothers who were murdered, is for the state to make sure it does not let such things pass,” Rothman said.
“The task that the people of Israel took upon itself, by military or legal means, is important for the sake of justice, for the sake of future generations, and for the sake of the story,” he added, hinting that an important purpose of the trials will be correcting propaganda from Hamas and its allies, and reminding the world what really happened on October 7, 2023.