On Tuesday last week, hundreds of Palestinians rallied in the northern Gazan city of Beit Lahiya chanting, among other things, “Out, out, Hamas out!” This is the first time masses of Gazans have openly called for the terrorist group to be removed from power. Protests against Hamas rule have since spread throughout the Gaza Strip. Good news, right?

But wait: Why have no pro-Palestinian protesters in the West so far stepped up to support these brave demonstrators? Why no mass protests echoing Gazans’ demand that Hamas relinquish power?

No surprise, of course: Pro-Palestinian protesters in America and around the world ignore the war-mongering jihadists who forced these Palestinians into the gates of hell . . . preferring instead to blame Israel, whose primary crime is defending its citizens from bloodthirsty terrorists. If the protesters truly cared about the Palestinian people, they would focus on the disaster zone of Gaza in which two million Palestinians are held prisoner by Hamas.

It wasn’t Western protesters who demanded that Gazan Palestinians be given the right to emigrate from Gaza and take refuge in neighboring Arab lands—it was President Trump. But this obvious humanitarian idea has drawn virtually no support from progressive voices, NGOs, the UN or other world leaders.

Likewise, most proposals for ending Israel’s war with Hamas envision the Hamas monsters remaining in place, if not specifically in power. This notion contradicts both U.S. and Israeli plans for the territory, which call for Hamas’s elimination. It also contradicts even the remotest sense of sympathy or desire to actually ease the Palestinians’ plight.

Gaza is a prison: Hamas are the wardens. In 2005, Israel withdrew completely from Gaza, allowing the Palestinians therein to govern themselves. Two years later, Hamas seized power in the territory from the Palestinian Authority. Since then, the terrorist group has run Gaza as an iron-fisted authoritarian state.

Here are facts that no “pro-Palestinian” protesters—or the progressive media—will tell you: In Hamas-ruled Gaza, there is no free speech, no free press, no elections. No rights of any kind for women or LGBTQ+ people. Arbitrary arrest and torture are commonplace. Those now demonstrating against Hamas rule are taking a mortal risk, since the terrorist group ruthlessly suppresses dissent. Hamas also has complete control of the economy, heavily taxing impoverished Gazans. No wonder Hamas leaders are some of the world’s richest terrorists.

Hamas, not Israel, is responsible for Gazans’ suffering. In fact, it’s Hamas that wields absolute control over Gaza. Yet protesters on U.S. college campuses and public squares worldwide irrationally blame Israel for the Gazans’ misery. Similarly, mainstream media push a narrative in which Israel, not Hamas, is the cause of the Palestinians’ suffering.

Another hard fact: Israel has not occupied Gaza for 20 years, nor does it have any political power over Palestinians in Gaza. Free Palestine from what?

Furthermore, it was Hamas that started the war against Israel, when they invaded it on October 7, 2023, then murdered, raped, tortured, incinerated, decapitated and kidnapped roughly 1,500 people, mostly Jewish civilians. Naturally, Israel retaliated, waging a military campaign to free the hostages and remove Hamas from power, thereby liberating the Gazan Palestinians. Though any other country would have done the same, no other country would suffer such vitriol for doing so.

Those claiming to support the Palestinians force them to remain prisoners. Because of Hamas’s belligerence, Gaza is almost completely destroyed—it is virtually unliveable. Thus, President Trump wants to allow Gazans to leave and build better lives elsewhere. Here’s one more fact most major media have ignored: A recent survey published in the British Telegraph reveals that fully 52% of Gaza residents would leave the territory either temporarily or permanently if given the opportunity.

Unfortunately, leading NGOs, the UN and Arab leaders refuse to resettle Gazans, condemning them to imprisonment in a hellhole and accusing Trump of attempting ethnic cleansing. Human Rights Watch, in February, for example, issued a news release with the headline, “Trump indicates intent to escalate ethnic cleansing in Gaza.”

Actually, Trump never advocated forced displacement. In fact, when questioned by reporters last month, he said, “Nobody is expelling any Palestinians.”

Why should Gazans be compelled to live under Hamas boots? The Institute for Social and Economic Progress (ISEP), an independent research institute, conducted a representative poll in Gaza on January 22, revealing that only 6% of Gazans prefer Hamas to rule post-war, while a mere 5.3% would vote for the group in future elections.

Strangely, most proposed plans for post-war Gaza would enable Hamas to keep ruling over Gazans, or at least be able to emulate the tyranny Hezbollah exercises in Lebanon. The Arab plan for Gaza’s reconstruction, for example, doesn’t even mention Hamas. It talks of a committee of technocrats who would temporarily govern Gaza. What they don’t tell you is that these technocrats would be subject to approval by Hamas and the Palestinians’ other dictatorship, the Palestinian Authority.

More outrageously, Steve Witkoff, President Trump’s Mideast envoy, suggested Hamas could continue playing a role in Gaza’s post-war politics providing they disarm—which of course they have no intention of doing. When the Allies defeated Nazi Germany in World War II, they didn’t allow Nazis to participate in governing the country after the war. Likewise, Hamas—who are very much modern-day Nazis—can have no role in governing post-war Gaza.

Palestinians of Gaza have finally risen up against their Hamas oppressors. Sadly, no resolutions have passed at the UN calling for Hamas to surrender and relinquish power. No mass of progressive protesters has arisen outside of Gaza calling for Hamas’s downfall. No media or NGO voices demand support for the Gazan demonstrators.

In fact, the only support for the Gazan demonstrators has come from Israel. Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a statement last week saying, “Learn from the residents of Beit Lahiya. Just as they did, demand the removal of Hamas from Gaza and the immediate release of all Israeli hostages—this is the only way to stop the war.”

Please make the point when speaking with family, friends, colleagues—or in letters to the editor—that those claiming to support the Palestinians don’t lift a finger to actually help them. Instead, they continue blaming Israel, rather than the Hamas tyrants, who are the real masters of Palestinian suffering.

If you agree we need to spread this truth, please use your email browser to forward this Hotline issue to fellow lovers of Israel—and encourage them to join us by subscribing to the Hotline at no charge.

Best regards,
Jason Shvili, Contributing Editor
Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME)

P.S.      Too often, American citizens take comfort in their insulation from Islamist violence roiling the Middle East, as well as cities in Europe. But the jihadists are clear that fighting Jews and Israel is just the beginning. At rallies in Iran—and increasingly in the U.S.—the crowds scream, “Death to Israel, Death to America.” They understand that Israel is just the tip of the spear of Western Civilization—because Israel was the birthplace of so many Western values. Today the Jewish state stands as one of the strongest democracies in the world—a defender of liberty and enemy of oppressive Middle East dictatorships and terrorism. I hope you’ll agree that we supporters of the Israel-U.S. relationship need to speak out. FLAME’s new hasbarah—explanatory message—“Israel’s War Is America’s War”—describes how Israel massively defends United States interests in the Middle East and how Israel represents a roadblock to Islamic expansion worldwide. Finally, it explains why the recent U.S. foreign policy of soft diplomacy and appeasement of Iran has failed consistently. Please review this convincing, fact-based editorial, which FLAME intends to publish to millions—in leading social media, as well as in the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Tampa Bay Times, Denver Post and Los Angeles Times. This piece will also be sent to all members of Congress, the President and Vice President. If you agree that this kind of public relations effort on Israel’s behalf is critical, I urge you to support us with a donation.

As of today, more than 25,000 Israel supporters receive the FLAME Hotline at no charge every week. If you’re not yet a subscriber, won’t you join us in receiving these timely updates, so you can more effectively tell the truth about Israel? Just go to free subscription.