Senior Hamas leader denies targeting civilians, claims responsibility for attacks limited to conscripts.
A senior Hamas leader has denied responsibility for civilian casualties in Israel, asserting that their attacks targeted only conscripts. Moussa Abu Marzouk, in an interview with the BBC, claimed that “women, children, and civilians” were not the intended victims of Hamas’s attacks, contradicting mounting evidence of unarmed adults and children being shot by Hamas fighters. This evidence includes footage from Hamas body cameras and eyewitness accounts provided to international news networks.
According to Israel, over 1,400 people, predominantly civilians, were killed in Hamas’s October 7 attacks. Marzouk, the group’s deputy political leader, subject to an asset freeze in the UK due to counter-terrorism regulations, was interviewed in the Gulf, becoming the highest-ranking Hamas member to speak to the BBC since the attacks.
The BBC pressed Marzouk on the situation in Gaza, including the scores of hostages held within the territory. Marzouk explained that their release was contingent on stopping the fighting in Gaza, where the Hamas-run health ministry reported 10,000 casualties since Israel’s military operations began last month.
In a recent visit to Moscow, Marzouk discussed the eight Russian-Israeli dual citizens kidnapped by Hamas on October 7. He stated that while two female hostages from Russia had been located, their release was impeded by the ongoing conflict, and only possible when “the Israelis stop the fighting so we can hand them over to the Red Cross.”
When questioned about the October 7 attack by the BBC, Marzouk asserted that Hamas’s military wing leader, Mohamed el-Deif, had ordered his fighters not to harm civilians, saying, “El-Deif clearly told his fighters ‘don’t kill a woman, don’t kill a child and don’t kill an old man.'” Marzouk maintained that only “conscripts… or soldiers” were targeted, while women, children, and civilians were considered “exempt.”
However, a substantial body of evidence, including eyewitness accounts, CCTV footage, and footage from Hamas body cameras provided by the Israeli government, documents a range of violent acts committed by Hamas during the October 7 attacks.
The BBC challenged Marzouk on these contradictions, but he did not directly address the question. Additionally, Marzouk explained that the political wing of Hamas, based in Qatar, often operates separately from the military forces in Gaza. Nonetheless, the UK government and the US Treasury Department both designate him as a global terrorist, with multiple charges related to coordinating and financing Hamas activities.
The interview with Marzouk took place after Israel refused US requests for a “humanitarian pause” in Gaza to provide aid and release some of the 240 hostages taken by Hamas on October 7. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that all hostages must be released before considering a temporary truce.
Marzouk claimed that Hamas did not possess a complete list of the hostages, as many were held by “different factions” within Gaza, including Palestinian Islamic Jihad. He argued that a ceasefire was necessary to gather this information, emphasizing the urgency amidst ongoing bombardments. Marzouk’s role will be pivotal in shaping the conflict with Israel and negotiating the hostage situation.
