Leaders of the major Palestinian terror groups have called for Arab states and the Muslim world to engage in “terror” during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan — even as the Biden administration aims for a Ramadan truce in Gaza.
Jerusalem Post reported Sunday:
Palestinian Islamic Jihad is calling for Ramadan to be a “month of terror” and seeks to escalate attacks in the West Bank and Gaza. In a recent speech, Abu Hamza, the spokesman for PIJ’s Al-Quds Brigades, said he wants Arab countries in the region and pro-Iranian groups to continue to “unify” various arenas and fronts against Israel.
This is the latest indication that terrorist groups plan to seek an escalation in hostilities over the next month. Hamza’s remarks were published by Beirut-based Al Mayadeen news channel, which is pro-Iranian and frequently highlights Hamas and Hezbollah attacks.
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The terrorist group’s comments are also linked to those made by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who has called for an escalation of hostilities during Ramadan.
Ramadan is set to begin on March 10, when the new moon heralds the arrival of the new month on the lunar calendar.
Arab and Muslim states have fought many wars on Ramadan, notably the Yom Kippur War of 1973, when Egyptian soldiers broke their fasts and crossed the Suez Canal.
But the Biden administration is treating Ramadan with great care, describing it as a traditional time of peace and hoping to fashion a hostage release deal before it begins.
Last week, White House national security spokesman John Kirby had this exchange with reporters at the White House:
Q Thank you so much, John. I’ll start with Israel then move on to Ukraine. You just said it’s not about trying to beat the clock to Ramadan, in terms of a ceasefire. But how concerned is the administration about the possibility of escalation during Ramadan, during this holy month, and how, you know, it’s going to be seen for U.S.-backed troops to be attacking Muslim —
MR. KIRBY: We’re mindful of the sensity — sensitivities, of course, around the month of Ramadan and the import- — the spiritual importance of that to — to the — to the Muslim world. Of course, we understand that.
What — what we don’t want us — we — we want to see this temporary ceasefire in place as soon as possible. And, again, if we can get the agreement for several weeks, it would take you through Ramadan anyway.
The clock that we’re worried about is the — the hostages. We can only assume that they are being held in abhorrent conditions and that their health is at risk, their lives are at risk. We want to get them ba- — out as soon as possible.
Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz said that Ramadan would be the deadline for a hostage deal, and warned that Israel will invade the southern Gaza town of Rafah, near the Egyptian border, if Hamas does not agree to a deal.
President Joe Biden recently appeared to back away from a promise that a hostage deal would be reached by Monday, March 4, saying that white he was hopeful, a deal might not in fact be reached before Ramadan.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent book, “The Zionist Conspiracy (and how to join it),” now available on Audible. He is also the author of the e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
