Policy Paper Summary, Progress Centre for Policies
Introduction:
The Israeli propaganda machine continually labels the long and brutal war of extermination against the Palestinian people in Gaza as a war against the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). This is repeated daily by focusing on the primary objectives of the war, foremost of which is the goal of eradicating the movement that played a principal role in the Al-Aqsa Flood operation in terms of planning, execution, resistance, and negotiations. The problem is that many Arab political and media circles adopt this label and repeat it as truth, mixing innocent intentions with malicious ones, or balanced purposes with biased ones, to the extent that even some who support and sympathize with the resistance, in good faith or due to misjudgment, adopt this label, deeming it fair to Hamas and its resistance project.
Analysis:
Several factors contributed to pushing Hamas to lead and direct the greatest of battles in the history of the Palestinian people, including:
– The inertia and impotence of the traditional structures of the national movement represented by the factions of the PLO led by Fatah, and the restrictions imposed by the Oslo Accords, which limited their national role in confronting the occupation.
– The unique conditions of the Gaza Strip, including continuous siege, successive wars, lack of hope for generations of Palestinian youth in Gaza, and the decline in opportunities to restore Palestinian national unity following the failure of reconciliation agreements.
– The experiences accumulated and developed by the resistance movement over previous years, as well as the internal conditions within Hamas, which led to a new generation steadfastly adhering to the option of resistance over other options and settlements.
All the above confirms that the comprehensive and brutal war of extermination is directed against the Palestinian people and their national rights, not against a specific movement. This war has two intertwined aspects: the catastrophic and tragic situation faced by more than two million Palestinians, involving extermination, killing, displacement, starvation, thirst, diseases, and deprivation of the basic necessities of human life; and the other aspect, which is the resilience and heroic performance of the people and the resistance. This resilience has contributed, alongside the exposure of Israeli atrocities, to thwarting the war’s objectives, garnering waves of overwhelming sympathy worldwide, shaking Israel’s status and image globally and domestically, tightening its isolation, and marking a new era in its history. This era emphasizes that it is no longer a state above the law; rather, the world and its legal tools monitor its crimes, hold it accountable, and pursue its war criminals.
The Israeli war goals extend beyond Hamas and the resistance factions, aiming to resolve the conflict through armed force, eliminating Palestinian national rights, including the eradication of Palestinians’ aspirations for statehood, as acknowledged by Netanyahu. These goals involve confiscating as much Palestinian land as possible, separating Gaza from the West Bank, and potentially resuming settlement activities in Gaza. Although these objectives are not officially declared, they are present in Israeli rhetoric and actual military performance.
The forms of resilience and heroic performance extend across various segments of the Palestinian population, including fighters who craft near-miraculous forms of resistance given the available resources and tight siege. This resilience also includes all workers in humanitarian fields such as doctors, nurses, paramedics, rescue teams, civil defense personnel, journalists, and relief workers providing essential supplies to displaced people, such as food, water, and shelter. Additionally, it encompasses the exceptional heroism of men, women, and children who maintain their families, humanity, and will to live and survive.
When Israeli propaganda insists that its war is against Hamas, it aims to demonize the national movement, provoke cultural and political sensitivities against political Islam, and justify the war of extermination. However, its operations do not distinguish between fighters and civilians or between men, women, and children, collectively punishing over two million Palestinians.
The culture of political division and other personal divisions among the Palestinian political class, have contributed to propaganda and media mistakes at the beginning of the war, such as claiming that the tunnels are for fighters and that the responsibility for protecting civilians lies with the United Nations. Other errors include downplaying civilian losses and claiming that losses among fighters are limited, focusing on partisan rhetoric as if the context is one of factional competition rather than a war of extermination against the people. These issues occur despite noticeable developments in Hamas’s rhetoric, whether in the Al-Aqsa Flood document, its successive responses to proposed exchange deals, or its performance in indirect negotiations.
Hamas has effectively assumed a leadership position in a critical and sensitive phase of the Palestinian people’s struggle and national movement. Its actual role in resistance and negotiations has surpassed all official frameworks, formal structures, and all before integrating into the PLO’s institutions, or preparing for this role through local and international alliances and discourse. Although it has made significant strides in its recent documents by defining itself as part of the Palestinian national liberation movement rather than merely as a Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, this is insufficient given the blunders of some Hamas leaders and continued discussion of the battle as between Israel and Hamas. This approach suggests an internal factional dispute rather than a major national war targeting the people and their national rights, where most victims are from different segments of the population, and where the resistance support is present amongst Palestinian supporters worldwide.
Summary and Recommendations:
The war which Israel wages against Palestinians will not stop at military operations but will include equally dangerous political episodes. Hamas must adapt its discourse and political performance to align with the comprehensive national nature of this battle. At the same time, meeting these requirements is not exclusively Hamas and the warring factions’ task. It is also required from all resistance supporters, including all Palestinian people, activists, intellectuals, and elites capable of contributing to this battle. It will be beneficial to develop mechanisms and set guidelines that serve the national importance of the battle and its strategic significance, including:
– Emphasizing that the war is an extension of the Palestinian people’s long struggle and national rights, focusing on the national rather than partisan and ideological nature of the battle.
– Aligning resistance rhetoric with international law and human rights charters.
– Avoiding attempts to religiously frame the conflict, which do not contribute to mobilizing Islamic peoples and are based on Hamas’s explicit document denying the principle of enmity towards Jews as a religion; and mobilising Jewish, Christian, and other leftist groups active against the war.
– Building broad national and international alliances opposing the war and supporting Palestinian struggle, highlighting the role of expatriates and diaspora frameworks in contrast to the negative effects of division.
– Leveraging political, professional, and media expertise in all arenas to enhance the credibility of the resistance rhetoric.