Palestinian diplomat: Ideology canāt be defeated with ābulletsā
Husam Zomlot says āballot boxā, not the bullet, is only way to defeat ideologies
The chief Palestinian diplomat in the UK says, āyou cannot defeat ideologies with bullets as Israel is trying to doā in its battle with Hamas.
In an interview with Ö÷²„“óŠć HARDtalk, Husam Zomlot said, āyou defeat ideologies in the ballot, not the bullet, the ballot box. And I assure you the Palestinian people will deliver their verdict.ā
Mr Zomlot said Palestinians wanted the chance to elect a government that would āsend them to prosperity, give them opportunities.ā But he said before this could happen, it was imperative āthat Israel ends its occupationā and there needed to be acknowledgement of āatrocitiesā¦ committed against the Palestinian people long before Hamas was created.ā
Hamas militants killed 1,400 Israelis and took almost 200 hostages in an unprecedented incursion from Gaza on 7 October. Israel has struck back at targets in the territory and at least 3,700 Palestinians have been killed, according to Palestinian health officials. A ground offensive in Gaza is expected imminently.
Mr Zomlot said he believes the current violence ācould serve as a wake-up callā and wanted to see the application of āinternational humanitarian lawā to end the conflict.
Mr Zomlot is the head of mission for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in London. Palestinian political leadership is deeply divided between Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party in the West Bank (the largest party in the PLO) and its Islamist militant Hamas opponents who control the Gaza Strip. Hamas is designated as a terrorist group by the UK and many other countries and is not part of the PLO.
