ARE PALESTINIANS CULPABLE IN ANY WAY FOR CURRENT CONFLICT?
The narrative that casts Palestinians as passive victims in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, whilst ignoring or denying their involvement in heinous acts of violence, is a striking example of selective storytelling that distorts reality. This framing, often amplified by certain media outlets and activists, overlooks well-documented instances of Palestinian-perpetrated atrocities, including rape, murder, and attacks on vulnerable populations like babies and the elderly. The irony lies in the contradiction between the image of Palestinians as helpless and the brutal acts committed by Palestinian groups, particularly during events like the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel. This essay explores this irony, highlighting factual evidence of violence and the absurdity of ignoring it to maintain a one-sided victimhood narrative.
The October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on southern Israel is a glaring case study. Hamas militants, along with civilians who breached the border, killed approximately 1,200 people, including 800 civilians, in a meticulously planned assault. The attack targeted civilian communities, kibbutzim, and a music festival, with victims including women, children, and the elderly. Survivors and forensic evidence corroborate horrific acts: women were raped and mutilated, some posthumously; elderly residents were executed in their homes; and families with babies were burnt alive. Dashcam and bodycam footage, much of it recorded by the attackers themselves, captured these atrocities, including the slaughter at Kibbutz Be’eri, where over 100 civilians were killed. A UN report by Pramila Patten found “reasonable grounds” to believe sexual violence, including rape and gang-rape, occurred across multiple locations, with bodies of women found naked, bound, and shot multiple times.
The irony is stark: whilst some narratives depict Palestinians as powerless victims, these acts demonstrate calculated aggression by armed groups like Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), who publicly claimed responsibility for targeting civilians. Yet, disturbingly, over 90% of Palestinians polled by the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research in December 2023 denied that Hamas committed these atrocities, despite video evidence. This denialism, echoed by figures like Palestinian diplomat Abdullah Abu Shawesh, who dismissed rape accounts as “lies,” reflects a broader refusal to acknowledge Palestinian agency in violence. The absurdity lies in how such denials are enabled by selective media coverage, with outlets like Al Jazeera often framing Hamas’s actions as “resistance” whilst ignoring civilian targeting, thus reinforcing the passive-victim trope.
Historical examples further expose this irony. The 2011 murder of the Fogel family in Itamar, where two Palestinian terrorists stabbed three children, including a three-month-old infant, and their parents to death, shocked even those accustomed to the conflict’s brutality. Similarly, during the Second Intifada (2000–2005), Palestinian suicide bombings targeted Israeli buses, cafés, and markets, killing hundreds of civilians, including the elderly and children. These acts, often celebrated in Palestinian media or by segments of the population, contradict the image of a uniformly oppressed, passive people.
The absurdity is compounded when advocates ignore these events to focus solely on Palestinian suffering, often framing Israeli responses—such as airstrikes or checkpoints—as unprovoked aggression. This overlooks the context of Hamas’s rocket barrages (over 3,000 fired on October 7 alone) and the strategic use of civilian areas for military purposes, which complicates Israel’s military calculus. By erasing Palestinian violence, such narratives not only distort history but also undermine genuine Palestinian grievances by reducing a complex conflict to a simplistic oppressor-victim binary.
This selective amnesia is not just misleading—it’s dangerous. It fuels polarisation, excuses terrorism, and hinders peace by absolving one side of accountability. Whilst Palestinian civilians endure undeniable hardship, ignoring the actions of groups like Hamas, who embed military operations in civilian areas, perpetuates a cycle of violence. The truth demands acknowledging both Palestinian suffering and their role in perpetrating atrocities. Only a balanced reckoning with these realities can move the conversation beyond irony and absurdity towards understanding and resolution.
Biased reporting from journalists, often aligned with Palestinian terrorist groups, plays a sinister role in pulling the wool over the eyes of well-meaning but misled individuals in the West. Outlets and activists who downplay or deny atrocities committed by Palestinians, or distract from them with whataboutery, help funnel billions in “charity” and “donations” to groups like Hamas, whose leaders, such as Ismael Haniyeh, have amassed personal fortunes, with estimates of their wealth reaching hundreds of millions in private bank accounts.
A Gaza resident, in a rare moment of candour on Al Jazeera, exposed how Hamas diverts humanitarian aid meant for civilians into its tunnels and private coffers, stating, “All of it goes into their houses.” These funds, often collected from the unemployed, disabled, and elderly pensioners in the UK and US, are siphoned off under the guise of humanitarian aid. Meanwhile, prominent advocates in the West, some enjoying lattes at trendy cafés whilst preaching “inclusivity,” profit by soliciting donations that indirectly enrich terrorists. This exploitation of compassion not only deceives the public but also perpetuates violence, as funds meant for Gaza’s civilians are diverted to armaments and luxury lifestyles for Hamas elites.
VIDEO: A Gazan woman surprises Al Jazeera reporter and tells him that Hamas is taking all the humanitarian aid down into its tunnels, then blaming Israel for blockading and starving the people. The reporter tries to convince her otherwise but she continues to attack Hamas.
Sources:
UN Report on Sexual Violence, 2024
UN Security Council Briefing, 2024
Various Social Media Users, 2025
The Nation, 2023
Al Jazeera, 2023
The Telegraph 2023
Washington Post, 2023
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