A senior Hamas official has declared that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will face legal prosecution for his involvement in the ongoing war in Gaza.

At a press conference in Algeria, Hamas politburo member Osama Hamdan accused Blinken of being complicit in what he described as a “war of extermination” against Palestinians. “His statements are misleading and we do not trust them,” Hamdan said, adding, “his partnership in the crimes against our people will be pursued legally.”

Hamdan’s remarks follow Blinken’s interview with The New York Times over the weekend, in which the Secretary of State attributed the failure to reach a hostage release agreement to Hamas. “What we’ve seen time and again is Hamas not concluding a deal that it should have concluded,” Blinken said.

Blinken criticized Hamas for prolonging the conflict, expressing frustration over the absence of international pressure on the group to disarm and release hostages. “Why there hasn’t been a unanimous chorus around the world for Hamas to put down its weapons, to give up the hostages, to surrender — I don’t know what the answer is to that,” he said. Blinken noted that Israel had offered Hamas leadership safe passage out of Gaza on multiple occasions.

Hamdan, however, reiterated Hamas’s commitment toconflict, insisting that negotiations with Israel have demonstrated that Palestinian rights can only be secured through force. “We are determined to stop the aggression, for the enemy to withdraw from the Gaza Strip, and for relief and reconstruction to proceed without Israeli conditions,” Hamdan said.

He also called for the formation of a national committee to oversee Gaza’s governance, seeking to counter what he described as corrupt efforts to undermine Palestinian interests.

As indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas continue in Qatar, progress toward a potential hostage deal remains slow.

Hamdan also touched on regional dynamics, voicing support for Syria’s opposition to Israeli control over the Golan Heights. “One of the most important values ​​launched by Al-Aqsa Flood is that peoples will not be liberated except through resistance,” he said, referencing Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

Additionally, Hamdan praised legal efforts targeting IDF soldiers abroad, describing the pursuit of Israeli officials as a “Palestinian national goal and a goal for all free people in the world.” Referring to legal cases initiated in Brazil and other countries, Hamdan said, “Those who commit crimes of genocide must be pursued all over the world.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)