CAIRO, March 14 - In a public statement, Hamas appealed to Iran to refrain from striking states that border it, even as the Palestinian group reiterated Tehran’s entitlement to respond to what it described as U.S.-Israeli attacks. The declaration represents the first time Hamas has openly commented on the direction of Iranian actions.
Hamas said it stood with Iran in the conflict while simultaneously urging restraint in operations that would hit neighbouring countries. The group said: "While the group affirms Iran’s right to respond to this aggression by all available means in accordance with international norms and laws, it calls upon our brothers in Iran not to target neighboring countries."
The statement also included an appeal to regional governments and international organisations to press for an immediate halt to hostilities. Hamas has shown solidarity with Iran over the course of the war, the group said, but to date has avoided signalling any intention to carry out retaliatory operations itself.
The comment comes against a backdrop of intermittent violence since a Gaza ceasefire took effect in October. Although Israeli strikes on Gaza eased at the beginning of the conflict involving Iran, the level of Israeli attacks has increased again in recent weeks, according to the account in the statement.
Separate but related hostilities have unfolded along other fronts. The Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, aligned with Iran, opened fire on Israel on March 2 in what the movement said was vengeance for the killing of Iran’s supreme leader at the start of the war, prompting Israeli strikes on Lebanon and direct targeting of Hezbollah positions.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthi movement, also aligned with Iran, undertook a military campaign against vessels it considered linked to Israel in the Red Sea during the Gaza conflict. The Houthis have voiced strong support for Tehran but have not issued threats to restart those attacks.
Hamas’s appeal frames a cautious stance: public backing for Iran’s right to respond paired with a plea to avoid widening the conflict beyond Iran’s borders. The group’s avoidance of direct threats to carry out retaliatory operations itself was emphasised in the statement. At the same time, the recent uptick in cross-border incidents involving Israel, Hezbollah and other groups underscores persistent instability in the region.