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As the war in Gaza approaches its fifth month, FRANCE 24 spoke to Mustafa Barghouti, a doctor, General Secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative (PNI) party and longtime human rights activist based in Ramallah. Barghouti called the situation on the ground in Gaza “absolutely horrifying”, with “people bombarded around the clock”. He also cast doubt on Israel’s stated goal of eradicating Hamas. “The real Israeli goal is to eradicate the Palestinian people, not Hamas,” he said. “They (Israel) know they cannot eradicate Hamas as a political force.”
“The 100,000 people killed or injured (in Gaza), are they Hamas? The 11,000 children who are killed, are they Hamas? Of course not. This is not an attack on Hamas only, it’s an attack on all Palestinian people,” Barghouti said.
According to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, at least 27,478 people have been killed and 66,835 wounded since fighting erupted on October 7.
Barghouti called for an “immediate, complete and permanent ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip. He also sounded the alarm over Israel’s statement that its ground forces would advance on the overcrowded Gaza border town of Rafah.
“They speak now about attacking Rafah. Rafah has 1.4 million people, at least, clustered in a very small area. If they start bombarding (Rafah) it will be the largest-ever massacre in human history,” he warned.
