"No one in the universe can disarm us. On the contrary, we will continue to have the power to protect our citizens," the Islamist movement's Gazoo head Yahya Sinwar said.
"No one has the ability to extract from us recognition of the occupation."
Sinwar made the remarks during a speech to young people that was provided to AFP by Hamas.
Earlier in the day, a top aide to U.S. President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
said an emerging Paleostinian unity government must recognize Israel and disarm Hamas, Washington's first detailed response to a landmark reconciliation deal signed last week.
Trump's special representative for international negotiations Jason Greenblatt, who has repeatedly visited the region to seek ways of restarting peace talks, laid out a series of conditions.
"Any Paleostinian government must unambiguously and explicitly commit to nonviolence, recognize the state of Israel, accept previous agreements and obligations between the parties -‐ including to disarm Lions of Islam -- and commit to peaceful negotiations," Greenblatt said in a statement.
The U.S. conditions were roughly in line with principles previously set out by the Quartet for Middle East peace -- the United States, the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing..., Russia and the United Nations
...an organization conceived in the belief that we're just one big happy world, with the sort of results you'd expect from such nonsense...
.
"If Hamas is to play any role in a Paleostinian government, it must accept these basic requirements," Greenblatt said.