Hamas ‘death culture’ beyond comprehension, says founder’s son

[Twiglets1]

Hamas’s embrace of “death culture” is beyond comprehension for much of the world, Mosab Hassan Yousef, the eldest son of Sheikh Hassan Yousef, the founder of the terrorist group, told JNS on Tuesday.

“It is not just the West, it’s also the East. It is beyond understanding that some people are willing to sacrifice human life for political gains, or worse for financial gains. I am a living example of this. My father had to choose between his eldest son and the cause and he chose the cause,” said Yousef.

“There is no parent in the world that would go into a fight that would put their own children in harm’s way. Hamas did the opposite. They went and dragged Israel in the most brutal fight of our time, knowing children would pay the price. This shows you their hypocrisy,” he continued.

“It’s the same game with pro-Palestinians worldwide. Everybody cries for the children on one hand, and on the other they are pushing Palestinian indoctrination which leads to the death of children. And then when children die, they blame Israel,” he added.

www.jns.org/hamas-death-culture-beyond-comprehension-says-founders-son/

'They continued to control their borders and bomb them - that’s hardly leaving them in peace'

Egypt controls its border too. And?

You think terrorists wants to live in peace?

I agree with much of what you say.

The only part I would question is the statement that Israel will be “loathed for generations” over the conduct of their government in this war.

It didn’t take many generations for people to forgive the German people for what the Nazis did - and Germany started 2 world wars.

My grandparents probably held some racism views towards the German people but my parents didn’t. I felt ambivalent about them growing up and now feel positive about them having met a few travelling. My children would consider it completely wrong for anyone to link Germans today with their previous Nazi government.

Given that Gaza has been firing rockets at Israel for years, and carrying out terrorist attacks on Israel at every opportunity (7 Oct was just their "big hurraaah" 😔), I'd gently suggest that border controls were a pretty fucking good idea.

Again writing Palestinian agency out of the whole thing.

Why do they do this?

Does Palestinian leadership have no part of the blame for the situation they are currently in?

It just proves the point of the thread: that Hamas are presenting themselves as dear little freedom fighters who only want peace and justice, and whole swathes of people are sucked into this... partly through over-projection of their own historical grievances, and partly because the Western mindset just cannot compute what's actually driving Hamas.

the Western mindset just cannot compute what's actually driving Hamas.

Agreed ... and that takes us nicely back to the title of the thread Hamas ‘death culture’ beyond comprehension, says founder’s son

But its also a little bit insulting, and dare I say it, racist, to paint Palestinian agency out of this. As if they are helpless in the face of the powerful 'white' imperialists.

I reject it. Palestinian decisions have got Palestinian people where they are, as much as Israeli decisions.

I think it is underpinned by racism. The racism of low expectations. Its all wrapped up in the fetishization of this conflict.

Yes, this too! I read over and over again on MN how Palestinian lives are "discounted" because they are "brown" (unlike, errrrmmmm, the population of Israel...?! 🤔). Again, it's that colonial thing.

Yes you can spot the people that have swallowed the white settler bollocks straightaway.

I think the key difference is the Germans did the whole mea culpa for 50 years or so after. That's the difference between them and Israel. All I ever see in TV interviews is various Israeli generals and mouthpieces doubling down on 'We are right and everyone else is wrong'. Regrettably, I can barely stand listening to them now.

Maybe in time they'll see the wisdom of humility and repentance but truthfully all I see is every rebuke brings howls of antisemitism. Like children putting their fingers in their ears saying Lalalala we cant hear you.

So much of this seems to be about keeping Netanyahu out of prison for as long as possible. We live in an era of narcissistic leaders who put self before everything and everyone else. It's a strange time to be alive.

Netanyahu has been a disaster, but at the same time I wouldn't want to be in his shoes.

The time for "mea culpa" may come, but it's not now when Israel is still deeply embroiled in a bitterly cruel conflict.

In Jewish belief, God commanded Joshua's conquest of the lands of Canaan to create Israel. The wars the Israelites waged on these lands is called milchemet mitzvah: holy war.

One of those lands was Philistia, where Palestine is now.

Prior to attacking an enemy, a Jewish army must offer peace. If that offer is not accepted, however, the Torah mandates that every male should be killed and the women, children, and livestock should be taken as booty.

And this only applies to wars with non-Canaanite nations.

The seven nations of Canaan–men, women, and children–should be completely wiped out if they do not accept the terms of peace offered to them.

(The last three paragraphs are pasted from a search I made to check that I remember correctly.)

There is specific mention of a people called the Amalek or Amalekites, who are the Israelites' arch enemy and must be wiped off the face of the earth for all eternity. Amalek is not necessarily a nation: it could be taken to mean Philistines/Palestinians, some extinct and forgotten tribe, or any persistent enemy of Israel.

Netanyahu said "You must remember what Amalek has done to you, says our Holy Bible. And we do remember."

Scholars argue about whether Palestinians are Amalek, but it's pretty ignorant to claim Jewish people have never waged 'holy war'. What did you think the Old Testament was all about?

The Germans weren’t doing “mea culpa” during the war though, in fact Germany was releasing wave after wave of propaganda- much like Hamas today.

Who knows what all the parties will do after the war? No assumptions should be made. I do think countries that have spoken out against Israel like the UK will be keen to normalise relations with their allies again afterwards, and that will work both ways. But who knows.

You're kidding me. You're going back to the time of the Old Testament?!

What is meant, but some are too short to say in succinct terms is that the CREATION of modern Israel is the cause of Hamas and co.
The definition of being " anti Zionist" is to be against the existence of Israel.

No matter how many try and complicate the meaning of Zionism, this the meaning of ANTI Zionism.

The non existence of Israel would only mean that the Islamists could fully concentrate on fighting each other in order to try and impose their version of how the Middle East should live under and relate to Islam.
I mean, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq and countless other near and Middle Eastern nations have long histories of intra faith fighting.

It's the fact that Israel is the only country in that region with little cultural adherence to Islam that is the problem for it and which makes it a shared target for Islamist groups which hate each other.

There are very large and influential Lebanese and Syrian communities all over the Anglo Caribbean and Latin America that for nigh on 150 years ran away from those countries due to conflict.

Jamaica, a country of 95% African non or hardly mixed Black people had a Middle Eastern descent Prime Minister before an unambiguously Black one.

The notion that without Israel, the Middle East couldn't start a ruckus even in a coffin is asinine.

Just like Europe, the Middle East loves a ruck.....to put it coarsely.

That seems to come with having so many nations and subcultures in a relatively small area of the world....just like Europe.

Yes. Why do you think Israel was created where it is? Why does Netanyahu cite the scriptures in his speeches?

Israel declares itself as a "Jewish and democratic state", meaning the religion informs its actions as a democracy. The Old Testament, in case you hadn't noticed, is about the building of a Jewish nation through violence. All nations were built with violence, but only some view those wars as ongoing.

To over-simplify: Hard-line Muslim authorities see themselves as carrying out God's sacred command to make the whole world Muslim, eliminating Islam's enemies. Israel sees itself as carrying out God's sacred command to make historical Canaan the Jewish homeland, wiping out the 'Amalek'. It's unstoppable force vs immovable object.

I realise the majority (?) of Israelis would rather forget about ancient wars and get on with living in the modern world. So would the majority of Muslims. The zealots wield a lot of power, though, and drag their peoples along with them.

I’ve seen many interviews with Mosab and I love his passion and how he is dedicated to exposing the evil of Hamas. The death cult vibe is very strong among Hamas members and radical Islamists. Mosab himself was beaten and raped by them, the very group he belonged to and was supposed to be protected by.

Thank you for sharing. I find the actions of Hamas on 7/10 alone were more than enough to convince me that they have no place in Gaza (or elsewhere).

I wish he would speak more about why people in Gaza are tempted to join/partake in such terrible acts (both the planning and/or the acts). He must have such an insight into how they recruit people. I’ll keep looking as he may have spoken about this and I’ve not found it yet.

Errm yes I know why Israel is where it is.

But if you have to go back to the OT to find evidence of Jews engaging in Holy War you have lost the argument. References to history and religion are hardly surprising when history & religious tradition bind the Jewish nation but a few extremists hardly represent Jewish people or reflect how Jews have behaved historically. While I'm not an expert on Israel's constitutional arrangements the Declaration of Independence enshrines freedom of religion and religious equality, and around 20% of Israelis are not Jewish, hardly the actions of a state dedicated to wiping out other religions (though many of them are dedicated to wiping out both Israel and Jewish people). Judaism is fundamentally not a proseltysing religion, unlike Islam.

I think it’s important to note that racism/segregation is a visible issue in Israel though. This doesn’t stretch anywhere close to a religious war but they certainly have issues when it comes to violence towards and segregation of minorities.

It's unclear that they do, at least not in the formal sense of 'human shields'. Like any extremist movement, it has civilian supporters prepared to do things like climb onto the rooves of target buildings.

More generally, the people couldn't prevent Hamas units firing rockets from residential areas, schools and hospitals. I would think it is true that Hamas tunnels extend underneath populated areas, giving the IDF an excuse to bomb those areas, but this doesn't imply civilian assistance. Many residents' groups set up independent shelters, refusing Hamas guards and banning weapons.

The question's almost irrelevant now. Starving people, on yet another forced march under fire to yet another crowded ghetto, are not going to be thinking about whether to sacrifice themselves for a political group. Any eventual survivors of this extended trauma are more likely to be radicalised, though 😢

I 100% agree with your last statement.

Its hardly the point here though is it? You'll find discrimination against minorities does happen in most countries. Shall we also do a quick search on how Jews have been treated in other nations in the ME? I'm sure you'll agree, its 'important to note'.
Algeria. Upon independence in 1962 only Muslims were permitted Algerian citizenship, and 95% of Algeria's 140,000 Jewish population left. Since 1870 (briefly revoked by Vichy France in 1940), most Jews in Algeria had French citizenship, and they mainly went to France, with some going to Israel.
By 1969, fewer than 1,000 Jews were still living in Algeria. By 1975 the government had seized all but one of the country's synagogues and converted them to mosques or libraries.
Egypt. 1948, approximately 75,000 Jews lived in EgyptAbout 100 remain today. In 1948, Jewish neighborhoods in Cairo suffered bomb attacks that killed at least 70 Jews. Hundreds of Jews were arrested and had their property confiscated. After the 1956 Suez crisis Egypt expelled over 25,000 Jews, confiscated their property, and about 3,000 were imprisoned. About 1,000 more were imprisoned or detained. In 1967, Jews were detained and tortured, and Jewish homes were confiscated as emigration continued.
Libya. 1948, about 38,000 Jews lived in Libya.
A series of pogroms started in November 1945, when more than 140 Jews were killed in and most synagogues in the city looted. The pogroms continued in June 1948, when 15 Jews were killed and 280 Jewish homes destroyed.
Upon Libya's independence in 1951, most of the Jewish community emigrated. After the Syez Crisis in 1956, another series of pogroms forced all but about 100 Jews to flee. When Gaddafi came to power in 1969, all remaining Jewish property was confiscated and all debts to Jews cancelled.
Although the main synagogue in Tripoli was renovated in 1999, it has not reopened for services. The last Jew in Libya died in February 2002.

I could go on. Who exactly is engaging in holy war here?

@SharonEllis, only an idiot would deny that Jews have been subject to brutal oppression for ages (about 100 years in your timescape; 3,000 in mine).

This doesn't automatically mean they are above reproach, that everything they do is the right thing, or they're entitled to annihilate a neighbouring country. Not in my view anyway.