They Can't Control The Gaza Narrative Because Too Much Has Been Seen Caitlin Johnstone Jun 02, 2024 A lot of mainstream-adjacent progressives act like Gaza is some radical deviation from normal US behavior, which is infantile nonsense. The US inflicts similar horrors on the world all the time; the only major difference is (A) this one’s being live-streamed and (B) there was a pro-Palestine movement in place before it began. With regard to (B), Gaza is really illustrating how much the US empire benefits from moving through its foreign military violence relatively quickly. When it can move from propagandizing the population about Evil Dictatorship X to destroying the country in question to moving on to its next war in the span of a few short years, there’s not enough time for public awareness to grow of exactly how evil the empire is being. It was years before a mainstream consensus developed that the invasion of Iraq was wrong, and it will probably be decades before there’s mainstream consensus about the evil shit the empire did in Syria from 2011 onwards. With Gaza, people saw this one coming and were calling it what it is from the moment it began, because there was already a widespread political understanding — at least on the left — that Israel is a murderous settler-colonialist project and that the Palestinians are a colonized people. This widespread understanding occurred because the Israel-Palestine debate has been raging for generations, so the collective has had enough time to really examine the facts and circulate its arguments through public consciousness. Those facts and arguments were there ready to be picked up and understood and used — even by young people who are new to the situation — after October 7. So what’s really hurting the empire’s information interests today is the fact that there was widespread social consciousness about Palestine already in place before the Gaza assault began, combined with the consciousness-expanding effects of social media and the ease with which ordinary people can now circulate raw video footage. Which really goes to illustrate the fact that consciousness and dysfunction cannot coexist, whether you’re talking about humans as individuals or as a collective. If we can really see something and deeply understand it, it’s much harder for depravity to function. The light of awareness makes it very difficult for an empire which is fueled by human blood to operate, which is why so much effort has been going into shutting off the lights. Shutting off the lights here looks like circulating lies and propaganda, killing Palestinian journalists in record numbers, blocking western journalists from entering Gaza, banning TikTok, stomping out student protests, and smearing everyone who tries to spread awareness of Gaza as an anti-semite. In that sense we actually kind of are seeing a struggle between the forces of light and the forces of darkness here — not in the sense the Zionist ideologues mean it, but in the sense that there are people who are trying to spread the light of awareness coming into direct conflict with people who are trying to shut that light down. And that’s how humanity will eventually move into health: by the light of awareness spreading throughout our collective consciousness to all the various ways our species is still dysfunctional. This spreading of awareness happens in ways that are as diverse as investigative journalism, teaching, research, tweeting, making videos, writing blogs, informing others in interpersonal conversations, and expanding your own personal consciousness with inner disciplines like meditation and self-inquiry. We can each participate in this unfolding of human consciousness in our own way throughout our lives, and every contribution we make toward that end makes a difference. Anything you do to make the unseen seen and cast the light of awareness on areas of dysfunction helps move humanity into a higher level of functionality, whether you’re spreading awareness of dysfunction out there in the world, or in yourself by bringing more consciousness to your own inner processes. We can each do many things every single day to help move humanity into the light, so that we may one day become a fully conscious species. We can each cultivate a practice of constantly looking for opportunities to expand consciousness in this way from moment to moment. In 2024, Gaza is very, very fertile ground for such expansion. https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/the...ive?r=1f4it4&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
IDF troops find 'Mein Kampf' copy in Nuseirat, Gaza Strip - report Haddad shared that the location in which the book had been found was the Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza. https://www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-806949
Hamas is using just about every residence for terrorism purposes. 'Post' in Rafah: 'No home without a tunnel,' says Nahal Brigade commander The Jerusalem Post's Tovah Lazaroff was in Gaza to find out more about the extent to which Hamas has integrated itself into civilian areas. https://www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-806809
Can Israel defeat Hamas? Its own military doesn’t seem to think so, clashing with Netanyahu And on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces' top spokesman seemed to lay bare the rift at the top of the country's leadership. The central stated goal of the war in Gaza — to destroy Hamas — was not possible, and to maintain it was meant "throwing sand in the eyes of the public," Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said. “Hamas is an idea. Anyone who thinks we can eliminate Hamas is wrong," Hagari said in an interview with Israeli broadcaster Channel 13. "The political echelon needs to find an alternative — or it will remain," he said, referring to Hamas. Netanyahu's office quickly rebuffed the comments, saying in a statement that "the political and security cabinet headed by Prime Minister Netanyahu defined as one of the goals of the war the destruction of Hamas’ military and governmental capabilities."
You may not be able to “defeat” Hamas as an idea. However you can certainly eliminate Hamas as a governing and militant entity in Gaza, which is the goal here.
WATCH: IDF destroys 500-meter-long tunnel near UNRWA school in Rafah Alongside the discovery of the 500 meter long tunnel, the IDF located several significant tunnel shafts and multiple branches of the tunnel in the Rafah area. https://www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-808390
Hamas faces growing public dissent as Gaza war erodes support https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0vewvp14zdo The man in the video is beside himself, a mask of anguish radiating through his bloodied face. “I am an academic doctor,” he says, “I had a good life, but we have a filthy [Hamas] leadership. They got used to our bloodshed, may God curse them! They are scum!” The video - unthinkable before the Gaza war - was filmed outside a hospital, inundated with hundreds of Palestinian casualties after an Israeli operation to free hostages from central Gaza last month. Seconds before the video ends, he turns to the crowd. “I’m one of you,” he says, “but you are a cowardly people. We could have avoided this attack!” The video went viral. And it’s not the only one. An injured man in Gaza denounced the Hamas leadership's actions in a video shared on social media last month Open criticism of Hamas has been growing in Gaza, both on the streets and online. Some have publicly criticised Hamas for hiding the hostages in apartments near a busy marketplace, or for firing rockets from civilian areas. Residents have told the BBC that swearing and cursing against the Hamas leadership is now common in the markets, and that some drivers of donkey carts have even nicknamed their animals after the Hamas leader in Gaza - Yahya Sinwar - urging the donkeys forward with shouts of "Yallah, Sinwar!" “People say things like, ‘Hamas has destroyed us’ or even call on God to take their lives,” one man said. “They ask what the 7 October attacks were for - some say they were a gift to Israel.” Some are even urging their leaders to agree a ceasefire with Israel. There are still those in Gaza fiercely loyal to Hamas and after years of repressive control, it’s difficult to know how far the group is losing support, or how far existing opponents feel more able to speak their mind. But a senior Hamas official privately acknowledged to the BBC, months ago, that they were losing support as a result of the war. And even some on the group’s own payroll are wavering. One senior Hamas government employee told the BBC that the Hamas attacks were “a crazy, uncalculated leap”. He asked that we concealed his identity. “I know from my work with the Hamas government that it prepared well for the attack militarily, but it neglected the home front,” he said. “They did not build any safe shelters for people, they did not reserve enough food, fuel and medical supplies. If my family and I survive this war, I will leave Gaza, the first chance I get.” There was opposition to Hamas long before the war, though much of it remained hidden for fear of reprisals. The last time Palestinian elections were held, in 2006, in the party list vote Gazans voted for Hamas in 15 out of 24 seats in the territory - in the other nine districts, voters chose a different party. A year later, Hamas violently ejected Palestinian Authority forces from Gaza causing a bitter rift with the rival Fatah movement, and took over the running of the whole Gaza Strip. Ameen Abed, a political activist, said he had been arrested many times for speaking out against Hamas before the war, but said - nine months on - dissent was becoming more common there. “In Gaza, most people criticise what Hamas has done,” he said. “They see children living in tents, and insulting their leaders has become routine. But it has a lot of support among those outside Gaza’s border, who are sitting under air conditioners in their comfortable homes, who have not lost a child, a home, a future, a leg.” Desperation and war are eroding social structures in Gaza, and Hamas control is not what it was. Four-fifths of Gaza’s population is displaced, often moving between temporary shelters. And law and order has broken down in places, partly as a result of Israel’s policy of targeting Gaza’s security forces - not just the official Hamas internal security service, but also the community police responsible for street crime. As control has waned, criminal gangs have thrived, looting neighbourhoods and aid convoys; and private security companies - some run by powerful local families - have emerged. One staff member from an aid organisation operating in Gaza described "absolute chaos at street level" and "a state of anarchy", saying that civilian order had completely broken down as a result of the Israeli policy. Israel’s prime minister has repeatedly vowed to continue the war until Hamas’s military and governing capabilities are destroyed. But some aid agencies - in both northern and south areas of Gaza - have also reported regular checks on their activities by local Hamas officials, and videos are frequently circulated of unofficial Hamas security forces shooting and beating those caught looting. One well-placed source told the BBC that dozens of people had been killed by Hamas in bloody score-settling with other local groups, after Israeli troops withdrew from one area. Fear of criticising Gaza’s leaders might have lessened, but it hasn’t gone, so it is still hard to accurately gauge, beyond individual testimony, how far support for the group is shifting. Some, like 26-year-old Jihad Talab, still strongly support Hamas. Displaced from the Zeitoun area of Gaza City with his wife, daughter and mother, and now sheltering in Deir al Balah, he said the group was not responsible for their suffering. “We must support [Hamas] because it’s the one working on the ground, the one who understands the battle - not you or I,” he said. “Empty accusations only serve the Occupation [Israel]. We’ll support it until our last breath.” A regular poll carried out by a West Bank-based think tank, the Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research, claims that most people in Gaza still blame Israel and its allies for the war, rather than Hamas. The latest survey in June said that almost two-thirds of Gazan respondents were satisfied with Hamas - a rise of 12 points from December - and suggested that just around half would still prefer Hamas to run Gaza after the war ends, over any other option. Glimpses through chinks in the media blockade around Gaza can never give a full assessment of the situation. International journalists are barred by Israel and Egypt from reporting on the situation there first-hand. What is clear is that Hamas remains very sensitive to public opinion. Strikingly similar messages regularly appear on certain social media platforms to justify its actions, often apparently in response to criticism at home. A source familiar with Hamas told the BBC there was an organised international network to co-ordinate social media messaging for the group. After Israeli families released a video showing the moment female soldiers were kidnapped by Hamas units on 7 October, some in Gaza questioned whether targeting women during war was in line with Islamic teaching. In response, several pro-Hamas social media accounts put out similar messages insisting that soldiers - male or female - were justified military targets, and saying the unit had been involved in shooting Gazan protestors during demonstrations six years ago. Criticism of Hamas is growing sharper, and long-buried divisions over Hamas rule in Gaza are becoming clear. Out of the destruction left by Israel’s battle with Hamas, a new war is emerging: a battle for control of public opinion within Gaza itself. (Article has additional pictures)
It is interesting that the IDF contains many Muslims -- most of them Bedouins -- who are firmly committed to scrubbing Hamas from the face of the earth. Muslim IDF commander: 'The Bedouin will fight until the last drop of blood' - interview The 39-year-old Ayadat is married and a father of two. He is a member of the Bedouin community from Beit Zarzir. https://www.jpost.com/israel-hamas-war/article-809227 On October 7, Muslim Bedouin IDF soldier Lt.-Col. Nader Eyadat was at home when reports of the rocket launches against Gaza border communities began. He decided to go to the Tze’elim Ground Forces training base in the Negev to ready himself to defend the South. While he was driving, the phone rang. On the other end was Col. Tal Ashur, who had just been appointed acting commander of the Southern Brigade after the late Col. Asaf Hamami was killed battling terrorists. “It was a short conversation,” Tal said, “’Hamami was killed. I’m taking his place. The battalion commander of the reconnaissance battalion was seriously wounded: Take command.’” The 39-year-old Eyadat is a married father of two, and is a member of the Bedouin community from Beit Zarzir. He enlisted into the IDF in 2005 and has since been deployed as a fighter in the Desert Reconnaissance Battalion, which operates in the area of the southern division around Gaza. Eyadat has since risen through the ranks. He was the first Bedouin to finish the squad commander course. He commanded the reconnaissance battalion when violent disturbances on the border of the Gaza Strip threatened the Israeli home front. After that, he went to school and got a position at the army training center in Tze’elim. Many of the division’s soldiers and commanders of the desert patrol battalion were on weekend leave on October 7, and some of them were part of training missions for several weeks, so their place in the southern division was filled by Nahal Brigade soldiers. “We organized very quickly as an initial force,” Lt.-Col. Eyadat said. “We had the mission to retake control of part of Route 232 and clear it of terrorists... Suddenly you see damaged tanks and armored personnel carriers on the roads, wounded civilians and corpses of Nukhba terrorists. I understood what was going on when I saw the body of a civilian at an intersection with a bullet in the head,” he said. “Until then, I was very focused on organizing the mission. I couldn’t believe that this was happening,” Eyadat recalled. “Then, we had an encounter with terrorists at the Gama junction” located between Kisufim and Be’eri. “My fighters and I know the sector like the back of our hands, we trained on infiltration scenarios [of] one, two, three terrorists. Who would have thought that thousands of terrorists would infiltrate?” THE FIGHTERS began taking over the central axes to allow the entrance of additional units from north to south and to enable the evacuation of civilians. “Some of the forces remained at the junctions and some moved towards the kibbutzim. At Kibbutz Holit, we helped evacuate the wounded. We heard that there was a shooting at the Sufa outpost. I arrived at the place and met a Caracal Battalion commander at the entrance while Shayetet 13 fighters were fighting inside,” Eyadat said. “At a distance of 100 meters, I saw a white van standing still. I sent forces to scan and heard gunshots. After a few minutes, one of the commanders came and reported to me that there was an encounter with two terrorists and that a fighter was wounded.” The unit was tasked with clearing the roads leading to their base, rescuing civilians, and locating Thai-speaking foreign workers in the area who were hiding in greenhouses. “The Bedouin warriors are brave. No need to tell us where to go. We know the area very well,” said Eyadat, adding that since October 7, members of the battalion have participated in a large number of additional operations to uncover and neutralize terrorist infrastructure near the buffer zone within Gaza. On June 6, suspicious movements were detected, and a group of reconnaissance battalion soldiers was sent to scan the border area. At the very beginning, the commander decided to lead the operations under the cover of the fog. The force under his command identified terrorists trying to infiltrate into Israel, at which point an exchange of fire took place. In the battle, the battalion’s tracker, who was a relative of Eyadat, was killed. The reconnaissance battalion fighters managed to kill three terrorists. “It’s good that it was the 585th Battalion that was sent to the scene,” said a senior officer in the Southern Command. “They foiled the first major attack deep into Israel for the first time since October 7. The defense minister and the chief of staff who arrived at the area praised them.” ACCORDING TO Eyadat, there is a clear connection between the reconnaissance battalion and the IDF. “First of all, we fight for the land,” he said. “We have been shoulder to shoulder in the IDF since 1948. We have 30 fallen soldiers in the unit who were not killed in vain. Then everyone saw what happened here on October 7. Hamas did not differentiate between anyone: It killed Bedouins and Jews all the same. “This is a terrorist organization that wants the destruction of the country. The veteran fighters of the reconnaissance battalion came here without anyone asking them and rushed here from anywhere in the country without questions,” the commander said. “They told me that it is impossible to sit at home when such events take place.” The intense connection and motivation also led to the establishment of the first reserve company of the Bedouin Reconnaissance Battalion. Abd Allah El Abid, a fighter in the reserves, who is married and a father to three daughters, came from his home in the Tel Sheba area of the Negev on his own accord and has been in the service ever since. “As a Muslim, I say that it is not written in the Quran to kill civilians, burn babies, rape women. In what religion does it say that? But they did it. I will insult animals if I say they are animals. Everything they did is against Islam.” Eyadat pointed to the area where they identified a terrorist ambush on the first day. “There is a video where you see a Bedouin father begging for his life and he is holding a small child. They tell him: ‘You are a traitor’ and killed him in front of his son. This is a very difficult video. You see the hate in the videos. Also of the citizens of Gaza. They hide behind religion and educate to hate. They murdered and kidnapped Bedouins.” El Abid explained: “The Bedouins will fight until the last drop of blood. All Bedouins think the same. Hamas killed Arabs, Bedouins, and Jews – no difference. I am proud of my military service. I volunteered for regular service and here I am. I will be here as long as they ask me to be.” When you’re not on uniform, do you receive the same attitude? When asked if he is treated with the same attitude when he’s not in uniform, Eyadat said, “I have never felt racism in my life. I walk around with a uniform and a weapon with great respect and pride. I call on others to volunteer as well.” “The reconnaissance battalion is a family,” the commander explained. “There are Jews and Bedouins here. They’re all together. There are stigmas about Bedouins, but when you get to know them, that disappears... “The bond between all the soldiers is forever,” he said. “I am proud to serve in the IDF.”
Israel's Hannibal directive states that it is better to kill Israelis themselves than to allow them to be taken hostage. Israel was responsible for many of the October 7 deaths.