The moral absurdity of the pro-Palestinian protests (supporting Hamas)

There have been thousands of people in 'pro-Palestinian protests' in London this weekend. 

According to the BBC:

The demonstration was organised by several groups who are calling on the British and Welsh governments to insist on an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and for "full humanitarian aid" to be sent in.
Maggie Morgan, from the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign Cardiff, said: "We are taking to the streets as a show of solidarity to the people of Gaza, to show our support for them, but also to make the government listen, and say 'not in our name, we're not having this.'"

I am writing this post as a brief riposte to the protest's underlying arguments. These so-called "pro-Palestinian" protests are ultimately, in reality, misguided (or deliberate) support for Hamas.

For me, I have been v. shocked & disturbed by the British reaction to the horrific massacres in Israel. I have already written about my anxiety with the general tone of equivocation against calling the Hamas attack on 7th October as 'terrorism'; and the media bias - made obvious at the al-Ahli hospital. With regards to these protests, I think a huge part of them is driven by a nasty latent antisemitism. To me, I can't think of another serious explanation. It's shocking to me how so many people can take to the streets to criticize Israel – and yet nothing to say about what Hamas has done. The actions of Hamas were equivalent to the SS Einsatzgruppen - children thrown on a pile and set on fire; and kids chased with machine guns at a concert!

Of course scenes of civilian suffering in Gaza is distressing. They rightly deserve our sympathy; and, as I wrote in an earlier post, it behoves Israel to conduct its warfare in line with the rules of war. However, we should not blind ourselves to the underlying reality. 

My two overarching arguments; firstly, Israel can no longer tolerate such a potent threat on its border. Its primordial obligation is to protect its own Jewish and Israeli population, perhaps even more than any other state on Earth (the Holocaust still within living memory). Secondly, it is the deranged leaders of Hamas that have wrought this destruction and death to Gazans. 

With that in mind, I should like to rebut the following arguments: 

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Argument 1: "show of solidarity to the people of Gaza"

    The people of Gaza are being hurt by Hamas

1. Hamas is sponsored by the Ayatollah of Iran. It is not an expression of Palestinian self-determination. The regime's oppression can be seen in the many Iranian women who are currently risking their lives to defy that regime's Orwellian oppression.
2. The endless stream of footage of human suffering from within Gaza is part of its propaganda machine. This is done to inflame and multiply its legion of useful idiots in Western democracies. Every death is a valuable contribution to its cynical war effort.
3. The Geneva Convention draws a distinction between military officers and non-combatants who don't wear a uniform. The rules of war have always respected the need for military combatants to be properly identified in order to protect the civilian populations. As such, soldiers caught wearing the enemy uniform - if caught by enemy forces - can be subject to execution. This happened in the Battle of the Bulge when German officers attempted to infiltrate Allied lines by dressing up as US Army officers. Because Hamas ignores this rule, it deliberately puts the Gazan citizenry - not only at risk, but in the direct line of Israeli force.
4. Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, and his children are living in wealth and luxury in Qatar.
5. This week Hamas blocked civilians from fleeing the zone of conflict - as part of its multifaceted practice of using human shields.

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Argument 2: "full humanitarian aid should be sent in"

1. The BBC - and various media - have discussed Israel's cutting off the water, electricity, gas, food and medicine to Gaza; but scarcely mention that Israel has constantly maintained that it would reinstate all supply lines – if Hamas frees the Israeli hostages.
2. For Hamas, keeping the 210 kidnapped hostages is more important than the well-being of 'its' own people.

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Argument 3: "Israel as an occupier"

Israel is not an occupier by choice – it is being blamed for defending itself.

Since its birth in 1948, its Arab neighbours have sought to destroy it. Israel has prevailed and acquired - with each war - territory to administer. Following Israeli withdrawal, as in Gaza in 2005, it was attacked with rockets by terrorists who are committed to its destruction and (as we recently saw) the butchering of Israeli citizens. When Israel offered 94% of the West Bank to the PLO, as a separate state; Yasser Arafat declined it. Today, it is again being blamed for defending itself. It was soon after Israel's withdrawal from Gaza that the Palestinians elected Hamas.

Without the Iron-dome defence system, Hamas's shower of rockets of 7th October would have levelled Israel. Its enemies seriously mean its destruction. Israel cannot entertain any ceasefire with these terrorists (and their Iranian offshoot sister organizations) - it's security demands that they be rooted out.

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According to the police, since the pogrom of the 7th, there has been an enormous rise in antisemitic incidents in England compared to previous years.

If you're a Brit - please consider signing The October Declaration (britishfriendsofisrael.org) to show support for our Jewish friends in England.