A Palestinian Authority official reportedly predicted that President-elect Donald Trump would “destroy Iran” and that weakening Tehran would effectively destroy the remaining Hamas terrorist cells.
Mohamed Hamdan, Secretary-General of the ruling Fatah movement in the Palestinian Authority, reportedly made the comments New York Post on December 19 during a meeting between the outlet and other senior Palestinian Authority leaders in Nablus, about an hour south of the West Bank city of Jenin, where Western-backed Palestinian Authority forces launched security operations against armed extremists allied with Hamas this month.
The Post first reported the conversation on Monday.
“We are facing Hamas doctrine. Our problem is Hamas’s connection to regimes outside Palestine,” he said, referring to Iran specifically.
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Palestinian security forces stand ready during the funeral of Ibrahim al-Qaddumi, a member of the Palestinian Authority who was killed during armed clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in the Jenin refugee camp, on December 27, 2024, in Nablus in the West Bank. (Nasser Shtayyeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
He added: “We see that Trump and the ruling government in Israel are planning to destroy Iran, so Hamas (its followers) will have no other choice but to become Palestinians.”
A group of more than a dozen extremists stole two Palestinian Authority cars and drove them through the streets of Jenin while waving Hamas and Islamic State flags on December 6, according to the newspaper.
Since then, Palestinian Authority forces have killed at least three extremists in the West Bank town and have vowed to arrest or “liquidate” the remaining people responsible.
Fatah suffered a major defeat in the 2006 elections, resulting in its rival Hamas taking control Control of the Gaza StripThe rule of extremist Islamists hardened and they launched repeated attacks on Israel.
The turning point came when Hamas terrorists launched their attack Coordinated attack on southern Israel from Gaza on October 7, 2023, killing more than 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostage.
While Israel has since destroyed Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Authority, backed by the United States and other Western governments, appears to be preparing to resume governing Gaza once the war ends.
Hamdan said: “Hamas rejects international legitimacy, that is, United Nations resolutions.” He added, “The world cannot accept a situation in which one party does not accept international resolutions.”
Hamas and other extremist Islamist groups have sown distrust in the Palestinian Authority, accusing it of closely coordinating with Israel over previous security raids on Jenin.
The Jewish state has in the past taken tough measures against Jenin, which has long been considered a terrorist stronghold. Palestinian Authority security forces until recently had a limited presence there until their new security operations this month.
A large banner depicting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hangs as Fatah supporters demonstrate ahead of its 60th anniversary and in support of the Palestinian Authority's security operation in the Jenin Palestinian refugee camp on December 29, 2024. (Jaafar Shtayyeh/AFP via Getty Images)
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The Associated Press reported that at least three members of the Palestinian Authority security forces were killed, including a captain in the intelligence services, during armed clashes with extremists. The Palestinian Authority arrested dozens of people.
The newspaper said that the Palestinian Authority leaders interviewed condemned the increase in Israeli settlements in the West Bank, but said they supported the right of the Jewish state to exist.
Hamdan reportedly told the newspaper that the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas — who criticized Israel and the United States before the UN General Assembly earlier this year — “still supports establishing realistic relations with the Americans in order to achieve the aspirations of the Palestinians.” However, the Secretary-General also said that failed US foreign policy in the Middle East was responsible for the rise in Islamic extremism.
Palestinian security forces walk with the body of Ibrahim al-Qaddoumi, a member of the Palestinian Authority who was killed during armed clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in the Jenin refugee camp, on December 27, 2024, in Nablus in the West Bank. (Nasser Shtayyeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Hamdan told the newspaper: “Look at what happened in Syria. First, the United States announced that the rebels were Al-Qaeda, and then (last week) an American delegation visited Syria.” “And before that, when the Americans made deals with the Taliban in Afghanistan. We as Palestinians believe that most of these extremist Islamic groups are produced by America through its efforts to create a new Middle East.”
On the issue of post-war Gaza governance, an Israeli official told the newspaper that the Palestinian Authority was still an option but would need to stop “corruption” and “terrorist financing” of Israeli settlers in the West Bank.
The official acknowledged, however, that the Palestinian Authority may have a “historically unprecedented opportunity” to return to its control over the Palestinian territories.
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The Israeli official added that the Palestinian Authority's opposition to Hamas could provide unique leverage “to participate in the next day's talks.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
