Unmask Hamas in Three Acts
Israel constantly stands on the frontline of the global and regional War on Terror. last week’s painful events on the Israel-Gaza border are an example of the complexity of this war and the viciousness of terror organizations such as Hamas.
Since taking control of Gaza in 2007, instead of assuming civic responsibility for the benefit of its residents, Hamas has dedicated itself to incitement, terror and destruction and thus is responsible to many deaths of Israelis and Palestinians alike.
All the while, Hamas has been staging a false and cynical act for the world audience.
Act one.
2006 – Israel unilaterally pulled out of Gaza in hope to further peace with its Palestinian neighbors. Left for the people of Gaza to use were Israeli Houses and Schools abandoned and empty, Israeli greenhouses still full of produce.
It took less than a day for the local Palestinian authorities to tear down the greenhouses, schools and homes. The opportunity to build upon the infrastructure left to them by Israel to create an autonomous and prosperous haven for Palestinians was pushed aside in favor of hate and anger – “a loaded gun”. This is NOT what the Gazans have expected from their own leaders.
Act Two.
2007 – With Israel no longer in control, Gazans' frustration was pointed towards those in power, the PLO leadership which had been loosing its legitimacy. Gaza held democratic elections, choosing Hamas – a radical Islamic terrorist organization – which would soon prove to be neither democratic nor caring for the wellbeing of the people.
In a practical “coup”, Hamas violently eliminated any remaining representatives of the secular Palestinian Authority. Next, Hamas revoked any shred of commitment to the Peace Process with Israel. Instead, the first chapter of Hamas Charter states that Hamas dedicates itself to the destruction of the “Jewish State” – Israel. Indeed, for over ten long years, Hamas has engaged in many terrorist activities: suicide bombings, stone pelting, cross border artillery attacks, launching of thousands of short and long range missiles, operating terror tunnels and more. It has constantly challenged Israel into military retaliation while it used its own Gazan civilian population as human shields as it was targeting civilian population in Israel. The pain and the suffering of the Gazan people means nothing to these so called "legitimate Palestinian leaders".
Act Three.
2018 – Hamas in Gaza has learned the effectivness of human shields not only in its violent encounters with the Israeli military, but also in soliciting international media and public opinion.
The stage was set for another round of bloodshed, courtesy of Hamas.
Hamas sent incited mobs to the border with Israel, under the false pretext of "civilians exercising their right to peaceful protest", easy-on-the-ear of the international community. But the true intent came out when, addressing local audience, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar said, riots were intended: "to take down the border and tear out their [Israelis] hearts from their bodies.” Hamas was thus ready to sacrifice more Palestinian lives for the sake of Media attention. These terrorists were violently pushing their way to breach the Israeli border, viciously using innocent civilians- women, men, children, teenagers as their human shields.
While committed to safeguarding its citizens and territory, and in a clear legal act of self defence, Israel made sure its border is not breached, despite violent terrorists' attempts to do so. Confronted with tens of thousands of incited mobs, the Israeli defence forces did not fire indiscriminately but were able to minimize the cost in lives of those human shields, due to our values, respect for Human Rights and meticulous preparations.
A popular phrase suggests that a gun in the first act will likely fire in the third act. Sadly, the world audience has ignored for a long time the presence of the gun and is now overlooking the "smoking gun" presented even by Hamas official, Al-Bardawil, who proudly admitted that 80% of the dead in the latest events were from within the Hamas terror group’s ranks. Do I need to say more?
For us, the people of the Middle East, this is not a show. For Israelis and Palestinians this is a painful reality. Real lives are at stake. This is the tragedy of our complicated region, West Asia, marred with extremism and terrorism.
Only when terror is recognized as such and defeated, can Israel and the Palestinians close the curtain on decades of violence and begin a life side by side in peace and security.
The International Community must unmask Hamas to what it is: a terrorist organization that stands in the way of any attempt of reconciliation.
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