Mesha’al warns Israel over Gaza ground invasion

Cairo: The leader of the Palestinian movement Hamas, Khalid Mesha’al, has warned Israel that its impending ground invasion of the Gaza Strip will not be a “picnic”.

“We are not seeking a ground confrontation, but we do not fear it,” Mesha’al told a press conference at the Egyptian Press Syndicate on Monday. “I won’t say that the resistance [fighters in Gaza] have sophisticated weapons, but it has a strong will and a lot of surprises,” he added.

Hamas, who rules the impoverished enclave, has said six days of Israeli air bombardments have claimed more than 100 lives.

Mesha’al said that Israeli Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking a truce in Gaza. “He asked the Americans and the Europeans to help achieve it [the truce]. He even asked it directly from Egypt. It was not Hamas who asked for it,” added Mesha’al.

Mesha’al arrived in Cairo on Saturday for talks with Egyptian officials on a possible truce with Israel.