Three sons and three grandchildren of Hamas ’ top political leader were killed Wednesday by an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip, and the leader accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.”

In his interview with Al Jazeera, Haniyeh said the killings would not pressure Hamas into softening its positions.

“The enemy believes that by targeting the families of the leaders, it will push them to give up the demands of our people,” he said. “Anyone who believes that targeting my sons will push Hamas to change its position is delusional.”

“The criminal enemy is driven by the spirit of revenge and murder and does not value any standards or laws,” he said in the phone interview.

The strike came as Palestinians in Gaza marked a muted Eid al-Fitr holiday, which ends the holy fasting month of Ramadan, by visiting the graves of loved ones killed in the war.

  • locke@sopuli.xyz
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    11
    arrow-down
    3
    ·
    7 months ago

    Were they soldiers of Hamas or civilians who happened to be directly related to the leader?

    • quindraco@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      7 months ago

      Contrary to Linkerbaan’s claims, this is mentioned in the article.

      From the article:

      Israel said they were Hamas operatives

      Separate bit from the article:

      The Israeli military said Mohammed and Hazem were Hamas military operatives and that Amir was a cell commander. It said they had conducted militant activity in the central Gaza Strip, without elaborating.

      What this article fails to contain is any sort of rebuttal - the closest it comes is this, which isn’t a rebuttal or denial:

      Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.”

      I can’t find any sources claiming the three were civilians. So to reiterate: Israel killed 7 people, claiming 3 were military targets and 4 were civilian collateral damage. Hamas (or rather, the Hamas leader who was the dead people’s patriarch) claimed the killings were an act of revenge. Both can be true, and I can’t find any sources rebutting either claim.

      • locke@sopuli.xyz
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        edit-2
        7 months ago

        IDF seems to be claiming that the children (not grandchildren, the ones aged 10, 8 and 4) would have been Hamas military operatives. That would make sense, given their father.

        In my opinion, that would make these collateral deaths, not “butchering”.

        • theluckyone@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          7 months ago

          If your society is content with murdering children based on your belief of what they will grow up to be, it’s not a society I’d be comfortable being part of, associating with, or existing alongside.

          May you be judged accordingly.

          • locke@sopuli.xyz
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            5
            ·
            edit-2
            7 months ago

            Perhaps you misread me or the article. The sons were not underage. I mean… they had children of their own. Did IDF know the underaged grandchildren were travelling with them? I have no idea.

            • acargitz@lemmy.ca
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              2
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              7 months ago

              Based on what we know about Israel’s Lavender system, they don’t care if the grankids were there, they already factored in the risk and deemed it acceptable.

            • dwalin@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              2
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              7 months ago

              Idf says: the would be operatives. Therefore they are not. Either idf claims to predict the future or they killed innocent people either way.

            • theluckyone@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              2
              arrow-down
              2
              ·
              7 months ago

              The IDF claims that the children would have been Hamas operatives, on account of who their parents were. It’s not hard to extend that reasoning to the grandchildren. After all, their parents were likely to be Hamas operatives as well.

              No judge, no jury, just an executioner, based solely upon the IDFs word that they’re likely to become future terrorists. One might apply that same logic to the whole of Palestine.

              No, I think I read you perfectly.

        • acargitz@lemmy.ca
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          2
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          7 months ago

          The phrase “collateral death” is inhumane and depraved on its own. No American would accept “collateral deaths” of their own service members’ families with a shrug.

          • locke@sopuli.xyz
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            7 months ago

            Murdering people vs doing something causes people to die are very different things.

            • acargitz@lemmy.ca
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              2
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              7 months ago

              They are as different as 1st degree murder and 3rd degree murder.

              • locke@sopuli.xyz
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                2
                ·
                edit-2
                7 months ago

                Yep. Very different. End result is of course the same, but so is the end result of a fatal aneurysm.

                • acargitz@lemmy.ca
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  2
                  arrow-down
                  2
                  ·
                  edit-2
                  7 months ago

                  What the fuck is your actual point here? That the 3rd degree killing of children is somehow acceptable? Would it be acceptable for example for Hamas to collaterally kill the families of IDF soldiers?

                  EDIT: Iran is supposedly soon going to be retaliating against Israel for the bombing of its consulate. Let’s say the target high ranking Israeli military officers (like Israel has been targeting theirs). How many Israeli kids is it acceptable for you to be collaterally killed in such an attack?

                  My position is no, none, collateral murder of kids is fucking wrong no matter who does it. What the fuck is your position?

        • peg@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          7 months ago

          Just calling it “collateral” doesn’t excuse or justify murder.

        • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldOP
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          2
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          7 months ago

          Wow that would “make sense” huh. Do you have any evidence for that “sense” or can someone blow up your entire family if your father does something bad?

          • locke@sopuli.xyz
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            edit-2
            7 months ago

            I mean if my father was the head of a rebel resistance movement, I think it would increase the odds of me being part of the same movement.

            • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldOP
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              2
              arrow-down
              3
              ·
              edit-2
              7 months ago

              Okay very cool so you endorse wiping out entire families because of one person?

              Where is the evidence these people were Hamas

              • locke@sopuli.xyz
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                2
                ·
                7 months ago

                Of course I have no evidence. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe you also have no evidence that they were not?

                • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldOP
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  2
                  arrow-down
                  4
                  ·
                  edit-2
                  7 months ago

                  I believe you also have no evidence that they were not?

                  I do have evidence they were not. I will debunk all the “presented evidence” in this comment:

                  Oh wait there is no evidence. That’s right.

              • locke@sopuli.xyz
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                2
                ·
                edit-2
                7 months ago

                Okay very cool so you endorse wiping out entire families because of one person?

                Do I?

                We know that our species has the ability to deteriorate circumstances so badly that violence ensues. In many cases, there’s no obvious objective single perpetrator – things just deteriorate slowly to a place where nothing sane can be done to fix it. Israel vs Palestine is an obvious example of this happening.

                Realizing this fact doesn’t mean that one supports it or any of the steps that were taken to end up in that situation. I may have the opinion that I would rather see Israel win this thing, but it’s not like I think that that would be an absolutely great thing. Just a less shitty thing than any other realistic option that I can see.

                I understand that this means that I indirectly support deaths of people who deserve to die, but also of people who don’t deserve to die. But now that we’re here, there’s no path in which that doesn’t happen.

                • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldOP
                  link
                  fedilink
                  English
                  arrow-up
                  2
                  arrow-down
                  3
                  ·
                  edit-2
                  7 months ago

                  I may have the opinion that I would rather see Israel win this thing,

                  Rooting for the Nazis is not a great look. Not sure how any person still supports israel.

    • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldOP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      6
      arrow-down
      6
      ·
      edit-2
      7 months ago

      Unsure, not mentioned in the article. They don’t seem to be “registered Hamas members” though israel claims them as such. But we already know that israel is using an AI system that rates Palestinians on Hamas likelihood by things like the Whatsapp groups they are in, who their family is and where they live etc.

      It seems to be a political assassination on a holiday rather than an attack on soldiers though. Acccording to France24:

      According to Al Jazeera, a drone hit the family’s car in the northern Gaza Strip’s Al-Shati refugee camp.

      An Israeli military statement said its forces killed “three Hamas operatives” who were “on their way to carry out terrorist activities” in central Gaza, identifying them as Amir, Mohammed and Hazem Haniyeh.

      They were killed in a car along with their grandchildren including a daughter which is unlikely company to bring along for an attack on the IDF.

      • Stovetop@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        7 months ago

        Must be terrorist activities like picking up aid or going to school.

        IDF logic: if they’re related to Hamas, then they must be Hamas. If they get food or go to school, they are feeding Hamas and training Hamas, which is terrorism.