Britain's designation of Hamas as a terror organization is a “crime against international law” declares PA Minister of Justice

Official PA TV program Topic of the Day

PA Minister of Justice Muhammad Shalaldeh: “Instead of Britain defining the Palestinian resistance organizations as terror organizations (refers to British announcement on Nov. 19, 2021, that it will recognize all of Hamas including its political bureau as a terror organization -Ed.), it should bear responsibility because it carries the legal responsibility for the disaster that befell the Palestinian people, first in the Balfour Declaration (see note below -Ed.), and it gave this legal approval in the British Mandate. Now, instead of recognizing the State of Palestine and providing help to the Palestinian people in achieving self-determination and establishing a state for the Palestinian people, Britain is carrying out this step that is considered a crime against international law.”

The Balfour Declaration of Nov. 2, 1917 was a letter from British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour to Baron Rothschild stating that "His Majesty's government views with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people." In 1922, the League of Nations adopted this and made the British Mandate "responsible for putting into effect the declaration," which led to the UN vote in favor of partitioning Mandatory Palestine into a Jewish state and an Arab state in 1947. In response, Britain ended its mandate on May 15, 1948, and the Palestinian Jews, who accepted the Partition Plan, declared the independent State of Israel. The Palestinian Arabs rejected the plan and together with 7 Arab states attacked Israel, in what is now known as Israel's War of Independence.