Hossam Badran, a member of Hamas’s Political Bureau, affirmed that the issue of resistance weapons is a purely Palestinian matter discussed within Palestinian national frameworks, stressing that the weapons in the hands of Palestinian factions are legitimate self-defense weapons and not a source of tension as some parties try to portray.

Badran said in a Zoom interview with journalist Lamis Elhadidi on the program “Al-Soura” on Al-Nahar TV on Saturday evening that the Egyptian stance on the weapons file is “appreciated” and stems from Egypt’s long experience and deep understanding of the nature of the conflict with the Israeli occupation.

He explained that some try to mislead public opinion by implying that Hamas’s weapons are like those of regular armies, affirming that “the weapons in Gaza—whether in the hands of Hamas or other factions—are limited weapons used for self-defense and confronting the occupation.”

He added that these weapons “are fully consistent with international charters and treaties that grant peoples under occupation the right to resist by all available means, including armed resistance,” considering that talk about disarming Hamas as a condition for stability in the region is “a grave mistake and misleading to people.”

The Hamas Political Bureau member emphasized that the fundamental reason for the lack of stability in the region is the continuation of the occupation, adding: “As long as the occupation remains, there will be no real stability, and if the world wants the region to enjoy a period of calm, it must force the occupation to respect the rights of the Palestinian people and their right to self-determination.”

He mentioned that the weapons file, like other major national issues, “is open for discussion and internal Palestinian dialogue,” and that the popular and historical stance on resistance “is firm and clear in defending legitimate Palestinian rights.”