Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election this week has sparked not only congratulatory messages from leaders in the Middle East, among them Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but has also elicited reactions from Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthis expressing skepticism that he will end the wars as swiftly as he claims. 

On Wednesday, Hamas released a statement indicating that its position on the Trump administration will be tied to its approach to the Palestinian people: "Our position on the new US administration depends on its positions and practical behavior towards our Palestinian people, their legitimate rights and their just cause." 

Basem Naim, spokesperson and a member of Hamas' political bureau, provided additional details on Wednesday, telling Newsweek, "The election of Trump as the 47th president of the USA is a private matter for the Americans . . . but Palestinians look forward to an immediate cessation of the aggression against our people, especially in Gaza, and look for assistance in achieving their legitimate rights of freedom, independence, and the establishment of their independent self-sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital." 

Naim added, “The blind support for the Zionist entity ‘Israel’ and its fascist government, at the expense of the future of our people and the security and stability of the region, must stop immediately.”