Hamas Lashes Out at UNSC Statement, Meshaal: "Israel" Must be Punished

Hamas has lashed out at yesterday's UNSC statement on the Zionist attack on the Gaza-bound aid convoy, urging all states to cut their diplomatic ties with "Israel".

The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting Monday in which the 15-nation body called for an "impartial, credible and transparent" probe into the incident and condemned "those acts which resulted in the loss of ... civilians and many wounded."

"What the Security Council did today, under the shadow of a US veto, pressure and bias, is a betrayal for humanity and not just for the people of Gaza and the supporters," Head of Hamas Political Bureau Khaled Meshaal as said on Tuesday.

""Israel" must be punished "... and we call for the trial of (Ehud) Barak, (Benjamin) Netanyahu and all Zionist leaders as war criminals," he urged.

The senior Hamas leader also called on all states to cut "all their relations and contacts in all shapes and levels with the Zionist entity," warning that "contacts and relations with "Israel" is a reward for their crimes."

Meshaal called on US President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to "take the bold initiative of a historic decision to break the blockade on Gaza and force "Israel" to do that."

He also called on Egypt to open the Rafah border crossing -- the only one not under the control of the Zionist regime, noting the siege has "failed as a political tool in forcing Gaza and Hamas and the resistance to succumb."