A top Hamas official said in an interview this week that the terrorist strikes that happened across Israel this week had been planned for two years.
Senior Hamas official Ali Baraka claimed to Russia Today this week (via the Middle East Media outlets Research Institute) that Hamas was actively gathering intelligence for the invasion of southern Israel covertly for the previous two years, that is, since President Biden assumed office and following the tragic and lethal American withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“For two years, we’ve been getting ready for this. Everything is made in our own plants. We have rockets that can travel 250 km, 160 km, 80 km, 45 km, and 10 km,” he stated in an interview with Russia Today from October 8, 2023.
“We have places where mortars as well as their shells are made. There are workshops where we make the B-7 and B-10 guns along with their shells. There are companies in our country that make Kalashnikov weapons and their bullets. We have permission from Russia to make Kalashnikov ammo in Gaza,” he said.
The Biden government doesn’t have any direct proof to back up Baraka’s claim that Iran helped Hamas.
“Those who help us with both arms and cash are our allies. In the first place, Iran is the one sending us funds and weapons. Some other groups that are with us are Hizbullah and Arab and Islamic people,” he stated.
Also, Baraka said that Hamas wanted to do a swap for prisoners with the United States, like the one the Biden administration just did with Iran, where they gave Iran $6 billion and freed five Iranians who were being held in the United States in return for five Americans who were being held in Iran.
“The United States also has prisoners. We need them. Yes, of course. Hamas members are in prison in the U.S. for life. We also want them. Yes, of course. We want the U.S. to free our loved ones from jail. The United States does prisoner swaps. It just did one with Iran not long ago. What’s the reason it wouldn’t trade prisoners with us?” Baraka said, “After all, it is taking part in this war.”
“Biden, who is the most powerful person in the U.S., said that he stands with Israel in opposition to Hamas as well as the Palestinian people. So, he is taking part in this violence and needs to pay for it,” he said.
He was proud that only a few Hamas leaders were aware of the attack that was going to happen and that the group was trying to hide its plans by giving the world a “rational” impression.
“We led them to believe that Hamas was focused on running Gaza and helping the 2.5 million Palestinians who live there, rather than the resistance,” he said. “Hamas was getting ready for such a massive attack all the time, under the table.”
“He claimed that the attack’s time and zero hour were totally concealed, saying that only a small number of people were aware of them.”
