On the 100th day of war, Abu Obeida, the spokesperson of Qassam Brigades, released a video statement clearly describing the state of affairs on the battleground.
It has been almost seven weeks since Abu Obeida released his last video. All of his statements meanwhile were all either voice recordings or in written format. When he disappeared for a while in the middle, there were rumours spread by Israeli right-wing media that he had been killed by Israeli forces.
However, he has returned with an 18-minute-long speech, the video of which was released by the media wing of Qassam Brigades on Sunday.
Throughout the video, he highlighted the strength of the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza, which has made an exceptional leap in the history of the struggle for liberation against Israeli Occupation.
Abu Obeida spoke about a wide range of topics, including the ongoing inhumane siege of the Gaza Strip by Israel, the magnitude of the loss faced by the Israeli forces in the attacks launched by resistance fighters, the number of tanks and vehicles destroyed, the nature of military operations they carried out and the future course of action.
Explaining the context of the decades-long occupation of Palestinian land and the conditions that necessitated the “Al Aqsa Floods” operation on October 7 he spoke:
“100 days since the start of the Al-Aqsa Flood battle, this historic and pivotal battle in the present of our people and our nation, this outcry that echoed through time and filled the world, with the power of God, to liberate all enslaved peoples and nations.”
“The Al-Aqsa Flood battle presented a model of how the fist can clash with the spike and how it was our people’s fate that the racist and vehement occupation became the most grotesque entity before the whole world, at times by crushing its pride and responding to its arrogance on October 7, and at times by confronting its brutality and crimes in a historical battle that seems like a figment of imagination and a path of the impossible.”
“100 days in which the criminal enemy committed massacres that make humanity bow its head in shame. If justice on earth existed, it would have judged this entity by disarming it and bringing all its leaders and army to trial, imposing the harshest punishment upon them. However, the hijacked justice in this world prevented that, reinforcing our conviction in the correctness and necessity of what we did on the 7th of October and what our people and resistance have been doing for decades in confronting the occupation and relying on the strength of our men and resistance.”
“There was no choice but to activate the strength we possessed to remind the world that this land and this path (of resistance) have its people and protectors. Thus came the epic of October 7th, which was to make this occupier and its gangs pay the price, the gangs that have committed massacres for 100 years against our people, occupied the holy sites, and sought to annihilate our people and eliminate their existence.”
Further, he went on to unveil the genocidal crimes committed by Israel leading to the total destruction of Palestinian life in Gaza while the world remained silent. The settler violence in different parts of the West Bank and the heinous torture faced by Palestinian prisoners were also emphasised.
“We look back 100 days to find that… the crime of this enemy and its fascist government reached the extent of demanding the burning and displacement of our people, the public desecration of our sanctities, and the slow killing of our people in Gaza, the West Bank, Al-Quds, and in other occupied territories. The enemy leaders, with their cowardly sadistic racism, take pleasure in torturing our prisoners and killing them in prisons, and they tighten the noose on Gaza to satisfy and indulge the instincts of their public filled with hatred and animosity towards everything Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim.”
Abu Obeida claimed that the operations led by Qassam fighters have destroyed around 1,000 military vehicles of the Israeli army. He alleged that the Tel Aviv authorities are trying to hide their apparent defeat in direct combat with the resistance fighters by intensifying “cowardly” attacks on civilians including children, women and the elderly.
“In the fact of what the cowardly occupier has been practising for the past 100 days, we have once again surprised the enemy. We have inflicted, and continue to inflict, severe losses and heavy costs on them, exceeding and surpassing what the occupation suffered on the 7th of October.”
“With the help and grace of God, during these 100 days, we targeted and rendered out of service about 1,000 Zionist military vehicles that had infiltrated the Gaza Strip in its north, centre, and south. We also carried out hundreds of successful military tasks at all points of the occupation’s infiltration and aggression, which we announced promptly.”
Regarding the settlers held captive by Hamas, Abu Obeida said:
“Regarding the issue of Zionist prisoners, we want to say that the fate of many enemy prisoners and detainees has become unknown in recent weeks. The rest have all entered the tunnels due to the Zionist aggression, and most likely, many of them have been killed recently in Israeli strikes. The rest remain in imminent and significant danger every hour, and the enemy’s leadership and its army bear full responsibility for this issue.”
Above all, he mentioned that the resistance has become self-sufficient in terms of weapons and other technical instruments, pointing to the fact that Qassam and others would carry on with the fight for much longer if necessary. But for Abu Obeida, what is more supreme is the will of the Palestinian people which continues to produce and nurture more and more courageous fighters with morale surpassing the “advanced technologies” of Israel.
He mocked the US and its allies who backed Israel in its genocidal war. At the same time, he expressed gratitude to the volunteers of all other groups supporting the Palestinian cause, not only in Gaza but in the lands of Lebanon, Yemen and other parts of the world.
“These industries would not have been of any use in the face of the dirty American arsenal that we face in the hands of Zionist mercenaries in the field, had it not been for the most important industry that we possess, which is the industry of the fighting human being, that Palestinian resistance fighter, whose will and determination to confront the killers of his grandfathers and fathers, the desecrators of his country, and the occupiers of his homeland’s soil, which no force on earth can stand against.”
“The insult to this enemy and the breaking of its aggression would not have been possible without the generosity, steadfastness, and greatness of a free, generous, and proud people who live with all pride and honour in everything and do not give away their homeland, land, and sanctities.”
“What will the technology of missiles, fortified tanks, and modern aircraft with their deadly weapons do in the face of the strength of the faith of fighters who spend two months and more in their defensive position, waiting for the advancing forces, waiting to defeat his enemy, and carry out his mission, devoting all of that to Allah and believing in the justice of his cause?”
“The testimonies of our heroic fighters returning from the front lines in the north, centre, and south of the Gaza Strip confirm the extent of their great heroism, their great faith in their battle, and their valour in defence, attack, and confrontation.”
“Our fighters return with shocking testimonies about the weak faith and motivation of the Zionist soldier and the gathered mercenaries. And how they are dragged into battle, how they cry in fear and alarm, and how they show this in front of our fighters, despite all the weapons, equipment, and huge fire cover they carry. And what the enemy army is showing and what it is announcing of imaginary heroism of his soldiers is the subject of mockery to the youngest Palestinian child.”
“We salute the loyal striking hand of our nation’s fighters in Lebanon of generosity and heroism, in Yemen of wisdom and faith, in Iraq, and all areas of our nation. We mourn our nation’s martyrs, and we bless their efforts and contributions.”
The Qassam spokesperson ended his speech by praising the sacrifice and steadfastness of the People of Gaza who have “shattered” the goals of the enemy even in the face of heart-wrenching tragedies they have faced.
“The enemy’s goals have been shattered on the rock of our people’s steadfastness and resistance. Here is the enemy’s arrogant leadership swallowing pain and diving into the mire of failure and defeat. The displacement that the terrorist war leaders “dreamed of has not been achieved, nor has the random destruction achieved or will achieve for them anything but shame, nor have they been able to recover the prisoners.”
“O our great, patient, and steadfast people, 100 days, and the resolve of the fighters did not falter, nor did they relent, nor did they weaken or submit to what befell them in the path of Allah. For 100 days, our great, legendary people stand tall on their land despite the pain and wounds, writing the most wonderful epic of steadfastness, defiance, and pride… So blessed are you, O people of Gaza, and blessed are you, O land of Gaza, the best of Allah’s lands, to which He has sent the best of His servants.”
