Following are excerpts from an interview with Muhammad Nazzal, member of the Hamas Political Bureau, which aired on Al-Arabiya TV on July 28, 2006.

Interviewer: As you have heard, Ayman Al-Zawahiri talked about the role of Al-Qaeda in what is going on. He threatened that Al-Qaeda would intervene. Will you stand in the same trench with him and with his group?

Muhammad Nazzal: We support any effort against the Zionist enemy. One of the disagreements we have with several Islamic groups was that we believe that the resistance should be directed primarily against this Zionist aggression and occupation. We should concentrate our efforts in Palestine, and in the resistance against the Zionist aggression in Palestine and Lebanon, because this will result in great achievements for the nation. All Arabs and Muslims agree on this issue.

Interviewer: Muhammad, in short, what you are saying is that you are ready to support Al-Qaeda, right?

Muhammad Nazzal: If Al-Qaeda or any Palestinian, Arab, or Islamic faction wants to come to Palestine to fight the Israelis, we welcome this.