RFI President Eric Patterson authored an article published today in WORLD reflecting on Hamas’s recent, vicious attack on Israel. Patterson writes:

The murderous assault on the people of Israel is an illegal and immoral attack undertaken by Hamas, which now shows its true identity as a terrorist organization. The attack, shocking in its murderous brutality, should be condemned by every government around the world. It is important to note that the attacks by Hamas violate the fundamental principles of international law and the moral structure that undergirds international law. Perhaps we should not be surprised since Hamas rejects many of those same basic principles of international law. Indeed, one can see just how extreme Hamas is simply by observing the fact that it has been designated as a terrorist organization by governments and that the illegitimacy of Hamas is a point of agreement by governments as diverse as Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.  

Hamas, like other violent Islamist movements, is responsible for terrorism and violence targeting other Muslims as well as Israel. In its attack on Israel Hamas was indiscriminate in killing young people at the Tribe of Nova music festival and those who happened to be in their way. If a Muslim teenager or a Christian mother or a Jewish citizen happened to be in front of Hamas, those people were gunned down. At present, we don’t fully know the identities of all of those who were killed. Hamas is indiscriminate in its use of terrorism, and this puts it in the same camp as Boko Haram, al Qaeda, the Taliban, and others who terrorize their Muslim neighbors and attack other targets of their vitriol, most notably Christians, Jews, or minority Muslims.  

What is remarkable are the crowds in the streets of Western countries, including the United States, chanting slogans in favor of Hamas. Perhaps there’s some confusion among idealistic young people, but that is inexcusable ignorance. Hamas is an illegitimate organization because it calls for the extinction of another state and the elimination of a people. No government is legitimate that kidnaps civilians or uses human shields.

Read the full article: “The Evil Actions of Hamas.”