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Sydney Morning Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
Has state recognition changed the game in Gaza? Only for the deluded
When Australia joined France, the UK and Canada in planning to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly next month, Anthony Albanese argued that Hamas didn't support a two-state solution. Its aim, he said, was instead to control all the land between the river and the sea. The prime minister was right about that. Reaching a compromise with Israel, dividing the territory so that two countries could live side by side in peace was the path chosen by Fatah, which controlled the West Bank, not Hamas, which controlled Gaza. But Hamas is prepared to make political capital out of a plan to recognise the state of Palestine, even if it's one it opposes. Hamas is looking to claim a victory, any victory, after 22 months of conflict in Gaza. More than 60,000 Palestinian lives have been lost, according to Hamas Health Ministry figures, including most of the senior Hamas leadership there. Huge swathes of the strip have been destroyed. Images of Gaza from the air conjure up the destruction of Grozny in Chechnya by the Russian military at the start of this century – or Dresden after Allied bombing during World War II. Hamas began this round of its conflict with Israel on October 7, 2023, murdering and raping some 1200 people, mostly Israelis, and taking some 250 into the Gaza Strip as hostages, uploading images to social media live as they went. It was the deadliest raid since the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, leading to the longest conflict in Israel's history, and the costliest one for the people of Gaza. Last month, there was unprecedented criticism from Arab sources, with calls from the Arab League for Hamas to lay down its weapons, to release the remaining Israeli hostages and leave Gaza. Hamas leader Ghazi Hamad came out fighting. One of the group's 'external leadership' members based in Qatar, Hamad did a long interview on Al Jazeera, asserting that Hamas would never lay down its weapons, while spinning the Gaza war as a victory. 'Why are all these countries recognising Palestine now? Had any country dared to recognise the state of Palestine prior to October 7? … October 7 forced the world to open its eyes to the Palestinian cause, and to act forcefully in this respect,' he said. 'The powerful blow that was delivered to Israel on October 7 has yielded important historic achievements… People who thought that defeating Israel is difficult, [realised] today that it is very easy. Today, through October 7, we proved that defeating Israel is not as difficult as people had thought.' However, most Palestinians don't regard this Gaza war as a victory for themselves, or for Hamas, according to polls conducted across Gaza and the West Bank over the past 22 months by Palestinian pollster Khalil Shikaki. They show that the October 7 attacks are viewed with increasing disfavour by Palestinians – as is Hamas itself. 'The resistance', as the Islamist group styles itself, is less popular now than it was before the war, with support for a negotiated settlement with Israel climbing. In Israel, polls show that more than 75 per cent of Israelis want the war in Gaza to end, so that as many Israeli hostages as possible can be returned. It's estimated that Gaza militants hold about 50 hostages, of whom 19 are believed to still be alive. Or half alive. On August 1, 664 days after taking him captive from the Nova Music Festival, Hamas released a video showing an emaciated Evyatar David given a shovel with which to dig his own grave. Tal Shoham, who had been held hostage with him, but was released during the second ceasefire back in April, said their thirst was so severe they drank from the toilet. PM Benjamin Netanyahu's latest plan to expand Israel's military operation and to occupy Gaza City 'temporarily' – forcibly relocating a further 800,000 Palestinians – is not popular in Israel. It was not supported by Israel's military, with Chief of General Staff Eyal Zamir arguing it could expand Gaza's humanitarian crisis as well as endangering the hostages. Still, the widening of the war was pushed through by the most hard-line government in Israeli history, including parties led by Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, who say openly they wish to move the Palestinian population out of Gaza and return Jewish settlers there in their stead.
The Age
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Age
Has state recognition changed the game in Gaza? Only for the deluded
When Australia joined France, the UK and Canada in planning to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly next month, Anthony Albanese argued that Hamas didn't support a two-state solution. Its aim, he said, was instead to control all the land between the river and the sea. The prime minister was right about that. Reaching a compromise with Israel, dividing the territory so that two countries could live side by side in peace was the path chosen by Fatah, which controlled the West Bank, not Hamas, which controlled Gaza. But Hamas is prepared to make political capital out of a plan to recognise the state of Palestine, even if it's one it opposes. Hamas is looking to claim a victory, any victory, after 22 months of conflict in Gaza. More than 60,000 Palestinian lives have been lost, according to Hamas Health Ministry figures, including most of the senior Hamas leadership there. Huge swathes of the strip have been destroyed. Images of Gaza from the air conjure up the destruction of Grozny in Chechnya by the Russian military at the start of this century – or Dresden after Allied bombing during World War II. Hamas began this round of its conflict with Israel on October 7, 2023, murdering and raping some 1200 people, mostly Israelis, and taking some 250 into the Gaza Strip as hostages, uploading images to social media live as they went. It was the deadliest raid since the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, leading to the longest conflict in Israel's history, and the costliest one for the people of Gaza. Last month, there was unprecedented criticism from Arab sources, with calls from the Arab League for Hamas to lay down its weapons, to release the remaining Israeli hostages and leave Gaza. Hamas leader Ghazi Hamad came out fighting. One of the group's 'external leadership' members based in Qatar, Hamad did a long interview on Al Jazeera, asserting that Hamas would never lay down its weapons, while spinning the Gaza war as a victory. 'Why are all these countries recognising Palestine now? Had any country dared to recognise the state of Palestine prior to October 7? … October 7 forced the world to open its eyes to the Palestinian cause, and to act forcefully in this respect,' he said. 'The powerful blow that was delivered to Israel on October 7 has yielded important historic achievements… People who thought that defeating Israel is difficult, [realised] today that it is very easy. Today, through October 7, we proved that defeating Israel is not as difficult as people had thought.' However, most Palestinians don't regard this Gaza war as a victory for themselves, or for Hamas, according to polls conducted across Gaza and the West Bank over the past 22 months by Palestinian pollster Khalil Shikaki. They show that the October 7 attacks are viewed with increasing disfavour by Palestinians – as is Hamas itself. 'The resistance', as the Islamist group styles itself, is less popular now than it was before the war, with support for a negotiated settlement with Israel climbing. In Israel, polls show that more than 75 per cent of Israelis want the war in Gaza to end, so that as many Israeli hostages as possible can be returned. It's estimated that Gaza militants hold about 50 hostages, of whom 19 are believed to still be alive. Or half alive. On August 1, 664 days after taking him captive from the Nova Music Festival, Hamas released a video showing an emaciated Evyatar David given a shovel with which to dig his own grave. Tal Shoham, who had been held hostage with him, but was released during the second ceasefire back in April, said their thirst was so severe they drank from the toilet. PM Benjamin Netanyahu's latest plan to expand Israel's military operation and to occupy Gaza City 'temporarily' – forcibly relocating a further 800,000 Palestinians – is not popular in Israel. It was not supported by Israel's military, with Chief of General Staff Eyal Zamir arguing it could expand Gaza's humanitarian crisis as well as endangering the hostages. Still, the widening of the war was pushed through by the most hard-line government in Israeli history, including parties led by Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, who say openly they wish to move the Palestinian population out of Gaza and return Jewish settlers there in their stead.
Yahoo
09-08-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
EDITORIAL: Rewarding terrorists makes no one safer
Prime Minister Mark Carney, along with the leaders of many other countries, has condemned Israel's intention to militarily occupy Gaza City, saying it will further endanger Palestinians and Israeli hostages. The problem with that, in our view, is that recognizing a Palestinian state – as Canada and these other countries intend to do at the United Nations next month – will do exactly the same thing, by rewarding terrorism. A recent interview with senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad by Al Jazeera television, translated into English by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), proves the point. Hamad said Hamas' terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 has led directly to international support for a Palestinian state and that it was not terrorism but resistance. In light of the fact Hamas' ultimate goal is to rid Israel of its Jewish population, can Carney explain how recognizing an independent Palestinian state, which Hamas views as a victory resulting from its terrorism, is going to make Palestinians and Israeli hostages safer? Given that Carney says Canada's support for a Palestinian state is conditional on Hamas disarming, freeing the hostages and being banned from participating in the electoral process to create one, it's hard to understand what our position is. Is Carney saying Canada won't support a Palestinian state next month at the UN, unless Hamas has already freed the hostages, disarmed and committed to not interfering in a Palestinian election next year administered by Hamas' main rival – the Palestinian Authority led by Mahmoud Abbas? LILLEY: Videos of hostages show the horror Carney is effectively backing GOLDSTEIN: Carney touts Palestinian leader accused of Holocaust denial as his man in Mideast EDITORIAL: PM's terrible choice to create Palestine Abbas – the man Carney and other world leaders are counting on to preside over the electoral process to create a Palestinian state – is an 89-year-old periodic Holocaust denier who then-Liberal foreign minister Chrystia Freeland condemned for antisemitism in 2018. That was when Abbas blamed Jews for bringing the Holocaust on themselves by engaging in money lending, for which he apologized in the face of international condemnation, before repeating the argument in 2023. Polls show he's deeply unpopular with Palestinians, who consider the Palestinian Authority corrupt and want him to resign. How any of this is going to make Palestinians and the hostages safer – particularly since neither Hamas nor Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu want a two-state solution – is increasingly difficult to understand.
Hindustan Times
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Kill Jews, Get Your Own State
The leaders of France, Canada and the United Kingdom think they're doing a good deed by saying they'll soon recognize a state of Palestine at the United Nations. Maybe they should listen to the response from Hamas, which thinks this recognition is a reward for slaughtering Jews. That's the only way to interpret comments Saturday by Hamas Politburo member Ghazi Hamad on Al Jazeera. 'The powerful blow that was delivered to Israel on Oct. 7 has yielded three very important historic achievements. First of all, it brought the Palestinian cause back. Why are all these countries recognizing Palestine now?' he asked. Good question. 'The overall outcome of Oct. 7,' Mr. Hamad continued, 'forced the world to open its eyes to the Palestinian cause, and to act forcefully in this respect.' Massacre as a political strategy has long been Hamas practice, but it's still remarkable to hear it stated with such unvarnished aplomb. The three Western countries are demanding that Israel accept a cease-fire deal, but Israel already has. Hamas rejects it. And after the recognition news, Hamas won't even come to the table. It prefers to foil aid distribution to Gaza and drag out the civilian suffering, confident it can manipulate Western opinion by blaming Israel for the hunger photos it uses to influence the gullible West. Good job, everyone. France, the U.K. and Canada call on Hamas to demilitarize, but Mr. Hamad on Al Jazeera declared that anathema. 'The weapons constitute the Palestinian cause,' he said. 'Surrendering our weapons means the end of the resistance and the end of the Palestinian cause.' This is the same Mr. Hamad who said a few weeks after Oct. 7, 'We will do this again and again.' Less publicized but equally telling was his explanation. 'We are the victims,' Mr. Hamad said. 'Therefore, nobody should blame us for the things we do. On Oct. 7, on Oct. 10, on October one-millionth, everything we do is justified.' Maybe Mr. Hamad can be foreign minister of the new state.
Wall Street Journal
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Kill Jews, Get Your Own State
The leaders of France, Canada and the United Kingdom think they're doing a good deed by saying they'll soon recognize a state of Palestine at the United Nations. Maybe they should listen to the response from Hamas, which thinks this recognition is a reward for slaughtering Jews. That's the only way to interpret comments Saturday by Hamas Politburo member Ghazi Hamad on Al Jazeera. 'The powerful blow that was delivered to Israel on Oct. 7 has yielded three very important historic achievements. First of all, it brought the Palestinian cause back. Why are all these countries recognizing Palestine now?' he asked.
