EJC President Dr Ariel Muzicant wrote an opinion article in the Austrian newspaper Die Presse about the terrorist organisation Hamas.
“Israel left the Gaza Strip in 2005, removing the Jewish settlements there and leaving behind glass houses, industry and various infrastructure. So there was neither a blockade nor an occupation. In 2006, the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip elected Hamas, destroyed all the facilities left by Israel and, shortly afterwards, murdered the representatives of Fatah (they were thrown from the roofs of their houses in chains). The plans to build a port and airport in Gaza and to turn Gaza into a holiday paradise were also canceled. The civilian population was unable to develop a normal life due to Hamas’s activities and was taken “hostage” by Hamas. The result was a complete blockade by Israel, but also by Egypt. Every year, NGOs, the UN, the EU and various aid organizations pump billions of euros into the Gaza Strip. There is talk of Qatar giving Hamas one billion euros a year until recently. Instead of building schools and creating jobs, Hamas invested in tunnels, rockets and terror. The Hamas charter states that one of the main goals of this terrorist organization is the destruction of Israel and the killing of all Jews.
Hamas propaganda war
Around 3,000 perpetrators were involved in the terrorist attack on October 7th, in which 1,230 people were brutally murdered. About half of them were civilians, some of whom had previously worked in Israel and scouted out villages and towns. The other half were Hamas fighters. They came to Israel with precise plans to murder, rape, steal and pillage. In the past six weeks, Hamas has fired 12,000 rockets against civilian targets in Israel, injuring and killing scores of civilians.
Since October 7, the Israeli army has launched a strike against Hamas criminals with the aim of destroying Hamas’ political and military structures and eliminating its fighters while freeing all hostages. Hamas is waging a propaganda war. The more horrific images of killed Palestinians are shown in the media, the better. Hamas dramatically inflates the number of victims, including fallen terrorists in this figure. So when the Hamas Ministry of Health speaks of over 11,000 deaths, one can assume that a significant number of those killed are Hamas terrorists.
Israel is allowing humanitarian deliveries of food and medicine to the Gaza Strip, but has cut off the flow of fuel to prevent further terrorist activities by Hamas. Nevertheless, dozens of rockets continue to fly against Israeli civilians every day because Hamas has stored supplies, weapons and diesel in its underground bunkers. Civilians are not allowed into the bunkers. These serve exclusively as a hiding place for Hamas.
Hamas has no interest in a Palestinian state or a peaceful future for the Palestinian people. Their only goals are the destruction of Israel and the establishment of an Islamist caliphate. Israel does not want to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, but will maintain security control after the destruction of Hamas to prevent renewed terror. It will be up to the Palestinians to elect a leadership that cares about peace and progress for the people of Gaza, who wants to replace the terrible suffering that Hamas has inflicted on Israelis and Palestinians with peaceful coexistence.”
