As the West Asia crisis escalates, a top Palestinian leader has stressed that the US President-elect Donald Trump would "destroy Iran", leading to the destruction of Hamas' influence.

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Israel and Hamas have been in a constant war for more than a year now. The conflict began with the Hamas attack on southern Israel in October last year. 

The Hamas group has been rising against the Palestinian Authority - supported by the Western governments including the US - which is run by the rival Fatah party.

Also read: Israel detains director of Gaza's 'last hospital,' accuses him of being a 'Hamas terrorist'

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“We are confronting Hamas’ ideology,” Mohammad Hamdan, Secretary General of the PA’s ruling Fatah party, told The New York Post.

“Our problem is with Hamas’ link to regimes outside Palestine,” Hamdan said, referring to Iran in particular. 

Hamdan said he expects Trump's return to the US administration to lead to Hamas and Iran's  defeats. 

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“We see that Trump and the ruling government in Israel are planning to destroy Iran, so Hamas [followers] will have no other choice than to become Palestinian,” the leader said. 

Notably, the Palestinian Authority has killed at least three extremist militants in Jenin since the December 6 incident. 

Also read: Three-week old baby girl freezes to death in Gaza while Israel and Hamas trade blame for ceasefire delay

Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip after defeating Fatah in the 2006 election. The group had a rule, which included an Islamist crackdown in the Palestinian territory and repeated incursions into Israel. 

However, it came to an end with the October 7 attack on Israel. 

Further, Hamdan said, “Hamas rejects international legitimacy, meaning UN resolutions," adding, “The world cannot accept a situation where a party does not accept international resolutions.”

Hamdan also said PA President Mahmoud Abbas “still supports realistic relations with the Americans in order to achieve the aspirations of the Palestinians.”

Disclaimer: WION takes the utmost care to accurately and responsibly report conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, Syria, Iraq, and non-state actors like the Islamic State, among others. In this context, claims and counterclaims are being made online and offline. WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos, and videos.

(With inputs from agencies)