"I challenge the Palestinians to take responsibility for their destiny, because that's what we're giving them. We're giving them responsibility for their destiny. Fully condemn and prohibit terrorism"

A senior Hamas official has defended carrying out the deadly October 7 attacks on Israel, telling CNN that it created a “golden moment” for the Palestinian cause despite the tens of thousands of deaths in Gaza.

Mahmoud Abbas told the U.N. General Assembly that Palestinians in Gaza “have been facing a war of genocide, destruction, starvation and displacement” by Israel. His speech came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heads to New York to give his own address in person on Friday.

Hamas is a terrorist organization committed to Israel’s destruction. But some of its foremost victims aren’t Israeli Jews — they’re Arab.

Meanwhile, at 11 a.m. London time in Hammersmith, throngs of members of the British parliament congratulated the Palestinian ambassador, Husam Zomlot, at a flag-raising event to mark the United Kingdom’s recognition of the “state of Palestine.”

CNN interviewed a key Hamas negotiator and member of the militant group’s political bureau, Ghazi Hamad, this week, at a key moment in the war with Israel.

President Donald Trump condemned France, U.K., Australia and Canada for recognizing a Palestinian state, saying it encourages continued conflict and emboldens Hamas after Oct. 7 attacks.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday that Hamas will have no role in governing a postwar Gaza Strip, virtually addressing the United Nations General Assembly after the Trump