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Haniyeh’s Top 5 ‘Moderate’ Moments That the Media Chose to Omit
Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal hugs senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh before leaving Gaza Strip, Dec. 10, 2012. Photo: REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah
From CNN to Reuters and elsewhere, the mainstream media is writing profiles about Ismail Haniyeh, and the domino effect expected on Israel-Hamas negotiations following his assassination.
Haniyeh was the political chief of the Hamas terror organization. He helped build its military and its Iranian relationship, and he was eliminated by an alleged Israeli strike on his residence in Tehran.
In reporting on his death, CNN told his life’s story — how he was born in the Shati refugee camp, how he rose through the ranks of Hamas power, most notably, his role in ceasefire-hostage negotiations with Israel since October 7.
Reuters also highlighted his role in negotiations, referring to Haniyeh as the more “pragmatic” or “moderate” of his comrades, compared to the likes of Yahya Sinwar.
While these facts are objectively true, they distort the mass-murdering killer of innocent civilians that he was. HonestReporting brings you five of Haniyeh’s most “moderate” moments:
When He Said “God is Good” and Prayed As He Watched Footage of Hamas October 7 Massacre
This is what Reuters published: “Yet for all the tough language in public, Arab diplomats and officials had viewed him as relatively pragmatic compared with more hardline voices inside Gaza, where the military wing of Hamas planned the Oct. 7 attack.”
Perhaps the Hamas leader did not physically plan the details of the attack, but he contributed to its potential every day, supported his organization’s terror acts, and celebrated it when it happened. Here is Haniyeh’s reaction as the news of the October 7 massacre spread:
On October 7, Ismail Haniyeh watched the footage live of Hamas’s attack on Israel.
While smiling, he then prayed with other Hamas officials.
He is now dead.
Updates Here: https://t.co/saTv7xr8tZ pic.twitter.com/HdERaqBgab
— Yashar Ali (@yashar) July 31, 2024
“From the River to the Sea” Haniyeh Supports “Armed Resistance”
Here’s a famous quote from Haniyeh: “The Hamas movement will lead Intifada after Intifada until we liberate Palestine — all of Palestine, Allah willing. Allah Akbar and praise Allah.”
Sounds pragmatic. In fact, it sounds like he’s fanatically moderate.
Donations to Gaza are “Financial Jihad”
This one is filled with lots of “moderate” speech. There are two quotes that stand out.
Westerners especially will be heartwarmed as he states early on that Gazans are the sacrifice for the greater good, and that this current war with Israel has nothing to do with the Palestinian people, but rather with Jihad:
The time has come for jihad of the swords; this is the battle for Jerusalem and the al-Aqsa mosque, and not the battle of the Palestinian people, or Gaza, or the people in Gaza.
Later on, as he calls out for financial aid in waging Jihad, saying it is more important that even humanitarian aid, he says this:
Dear brothers and sisters, let us call this “financial Jihad” … despite the immense importance and Gaza’s need for any aid it can get. This Is financial Jihad … the notion of waging Jihad with one’s life and one’s money.
“The blood of children, women and elderly” should be used as motivation for the resistance
Anti-Israel protesters on college campuses may not believe it, but this is as pragmatic as it gets with Haniyeh.
CNN wrote that “Haniyeh has also felt the personal toll of the war in Gaza,” as his sister was arrested in Israel and “Israeli airstrikes killed three of his sons and four of his grandchildren.”
The network also attempted to paint him as a true diplomat: “Afterward, Haniyeh insisted their deaths would not affect ongoing ceasefire and hostage talks.”
Interestingly, he was quoted saying this immediately after: “Whoever thinks that by targeting my kids during the negotiation talks and before a deal is agreed upon that it will force Hamas to back down on its demands is delusional.”
And there’s a reason why — a fundamental ideology that CNN failed to omit.
After October 7, he got on television, and preached this message of “peace” and his true feelings on a lasting ceasefire:
The blood of the children, women and elderly … We need this blood so that it will ignite within us the spirit of revolution, so that it will arouse within us persistence, so that it will arouse within us defiance and advance…
Is it possible to say that post-October 7, Hamas has the Palestinian people’s best interest at heart?
That time he lead chants calling for the massacre of Jews and, oh, “death to Israel”
Finally, here’s the number one moment of his moderate, diplomatic leadership. This one really shows how willing he would be to find a compromise with Israel — and, oh, the Jewish people.
A reminder that leader of Hamas Ismail Haniyeh led the ancient chant for the massacre of Jews “Khaybar, Khaybar” and called for the destruction of Israel. Many say Hamas changed their charter to recognise Israel. It was a sham. Haniyeh wanted blood.pic.twitter.com/i4LvgVUnLa
— Heidi Bachram (@HeidiBachram) July 31, 2024
So, keep these five examples, just some of many, in mind as you read the news, especially the neutral profiles about the terrorist Ismail Haniyeh’s life and rise to power, and his stake in the hostage and ceasefire negotiations.
The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.
The post Haniyeh’s Top 5 ‘Moderate’ Moments That the Media Chose to Omit first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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French Police Arrest Man Suspected of Attempted Arson Against Synagogue
French police stand guard after cars were set on fire in front of the city’s synagogue, in La Grande-Motte, France, August 24, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Manon Cruz
French police have arrested a man suspected of trying to set a synagogue ablaze in the southern French city of la Grande-Motte on Saturday, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said.
About 200 police officers had been hunting for the suspect, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said earlier, adding that the attacker had set fire to several entry doors to the synagogue and several cars nearby.
BFM TV said the suspect was a 33-year-old Algerian. Local police declined to give details.
The anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office, which was put in charge of the investigation, said early on Sunday that a suspect had been arrested in Nîmes on Saturday evening.
“Before the police could intervene, (the suspect) opened fire on the (police), which returned fire. The man was wounded in the face,” the office said in a statement, adding that two other people were taken into custody.
A policeman was slightly injured when a gas bottle exploded as police secured the site of the attack on Saturday morning, Attal said.
“This is an antisemitic attack. Once more, our Jewish compatriots are targeted,” Attal said on X. “In the face of antisemitism, in the face of violence, we will never allow ourselves to be intimidated.”
After visiting the synagogue, Attal said an “absolute tragedy” had been narrowly averted after firefighters and police arrived quickly at the scene.
Local media reported earlier that the suspect had set fire to two cars, one of which contained at least one gas bottle, in the synagogue’s parking area at about 8:30 a.m. (0630 GMT).
Police protection of synagogues, and Jewish schools and shops would be stepped up across France, the government said.
France, like other countries in Europe, has seen a surge in antisemitic incidents following the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and Israel’s retaliatory action in Gaza.
Le Parisien, franceinfo and other media said the suspect had been seen on CCTV shortly before the attack with a Palestinian flag tied round his waist.
“Exploding a gas bottle in a car in front of the Grande Motte synagogue at the expected time of arrival of the faithful: it’s not just attacking a place of worship, it’s an attempt to kill Jews,” Yonathan Arfi, who leads the CRIF, an umbrella organization of French Jewish groups, said on X.
La Grande-Motte is a port and resort city on the French Mediterranean coast.
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‘First Phase’ of Attack Against Israel is ‘Over,’ Hezbollah Declares, Amid Fears of Regional War
Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters through a screen during a rally commemorating the annual Hezbollah Martyrs’ Day, in Beirut’s southern suburbs. Photo: Reuters/Aziz Taher
i24 News – A Hezbollah official said on Sunday that the jihadist group does not wish that its rocket and drone attack against Israel early in the morning should trigger a regional war and, as far as it is concerned, the “first phase” of the attack is over.
The official said the group took time to retaliate for the assassination of top commander Fuad Shukr last month due to “political considerations,” chiefly the ongoing talks on a ceasefire and hostage release deal for the Gaza Strip.
The terrorist did not elaborate as to why the group decided to launch its attack despite the still-ongoing negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
The official stressed the Shiite militia had “worked” to make sure its response to the July 30 assassination would not trigger a full-scale war.
Hezbollah launched over 320 rockets & drones at Israel, responding to the killing of terrorist Fuad Shukr
But before the strike, the IDF preemptively hit thousands of rocket launchers in Lebanon
Here is everything you need to know, including the latest safety instructions: pic.twitter.com/FyHik3aeIz
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) August 25, 2024
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Syrian President Says Efforts to Restore Ties with Turkey Have Yielded No Results
Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad speaks to the Syrian parliament in Damascus, Syria August 25, 2024. Photo: SANA/Handout via REUTERS
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Sunday that efforts to mend ties with Turkey had so far brought no tangible results.
“The initiatives did not yield any results worth mentioning despite the seriousness and genuine keenness of mediators,” Assad said in a speech to the Syrian parliament, referring to conciliation efforts by Russia, Iran and Iraq.
Turkey severed ties with Syria in 2011 after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, in which it supported rebels seeking to oust Assad. Assad views the rebels as terrorists.
“The solution is openness,” Assad said. “Restoring a relationship requires first removing the causes that led to its destruction.”
The Syrian president made clear that while he wants Turkish troops to withdraw from Syria, that was not a precondition for talks.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said earlier in July he would extend an invitation to Assad “any time” for possible talks to restore relations.
A Turkish newspaper earlier reported Erdogan and Assad could meet in August, but a Turkish diplomat denied the report.
Russia has been trying to facilitate a meeting between the two leaders in an effort to restore ties. Iraq also said in July that it may seek to try to bring the two leaders together.
The post Syrian President Says Efforts to Restore Ties with Turkey Have Yielded No Results first appeared on Algemeiner.com.