Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh told an audience in Tehran that only armed resistance would liberate Palestinian land, and a two-state solution would fail

Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh told an audience in Tehran Sunday that only armed resistance would liberate Palestinian land, and a two-state solution with a Palestinian state existing side-by-side with Israel would fail.

Haniyeh, whose comments were transmitted to a video conference in the Iranian capital, said intifada is capable of liberating “occupied Palestinian land” and “restoring the rights” of the Palestinian people, Al- Resalah television quoted him as saying.

Haniyeh continued to doubt the PA efforts to work with the international community to gain recognition for a Palestinian state, saying a two-state solution as recommended by the EU and the US was a fallacy, and insisted that it would fail.

The Hamas leader said negotiations were a “mirage,” and only through armed resistance could Al-Quds and “the land” be liberated. He urged Palestinian negotiators not to make any settlements given their failure to “restore the rights” of the Palestinian people, including the right of return for Palestinian refugees.

The Hamas leader has dismissed the UN, saying the international body is “controlled by the Americans and others,” and that its political orientation is “not beneficial.”