The Abandonment of Palestinians in Gaza

"For the past several days, our reporters and several of Gaza’s most prominent anti-Hamas activists have been subjected to an intense campaign of surveillance and intimidation by Hamas." 

"And we’re hearing about many activists who have been effectively placed under house arrest by Hamas. They’ve made it clear their number one goal is to prevent any anti-Hamas demonstrations from taking place in Gaza."

"What the world doesn't really know, is that there is a strong opposition movement inside Gaza today that's developing against Hamas."

"A lot of people are fed up from the war, fed up from Hamas's wrong choices, and they want to protest [demanding that Hamas disarm, and leave the Strip] in order to stop the war, to stop the Israeli attacks, and to rebuild Gaza."

"[At least half of Gazans want Hamas out], so they  can get a better future, a better life. [The same number were in retrospect] unhappy with the October 7 attacks." 

Hadeel Oueiss, editor-in-chief, Jusoor News 

 

"Hamas was much better prepared than we were [they were tipped off]."

"[Hamas has] the weapons, the force and the means to intimidate people. They threatened families and reportedly paid money to influential clan leaders to publicly announce that they would disown any family member who participated in t he demonstration."

"[The opposition movement wants Hamas to disarm] so that reconstruction can begin ... [and] living conditions can improve."

Mohammad Hussein Lafi, protest organizer 

Members of Hamas cracking down on Gazans. Photo: Screenshot from X account of Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib

 

"The situation in Gaza is very difficult. They are kidnapping people and threatening people. The level of terror is high."

"There are fatwas calling for killing and fatwas declaring people infidels in the mosques, and calls saying the protest movement has been postponed."

"Things are very difficult. Since the morning, they’ve been arresting people and kidnapping people from the streets. Things are very bad."

Name withheld by request 

 

"[Hospitals across Gaza had been turned into] makeshift police stations, interrogation sites, and torture centers."

"Families are being threatened, people placed under house arrest, and Hamas’s al-Qassam brigades [the forces responsible for October 7] have been fully mobilized to reinforce police and intelligence units with explicit shoot-to-kill order."

"[The mainstream media has failed to report on the campaign] apparently because Israel is not involved – so no Jews, no news."

"This is what the abandonment of Palestinians in Gaza looks like. Shame on all who stay silent in the face of jihadi, ISIS-like violence against the very people they claim to champion."

Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, humanitarian activist originally from Gaza, now living in the U.S.

 

"The fact that organizers announced the protest weeks in advance made it easier for Hamas to prepare, intimidate people, pressure families, and silence the movement before it reached the streets."

"In Gaza, protest movements have often been more successful when they were organized quietly and appeared suddenly."

"This time, the early announcement gave Hamas the time and pretext to suppress it."

Ahed al-Hendi, senior fellow, Center for Peace Communications  

To all Western media, including pro-Palestine outlets: right now, thousands of Palestinian civilians are taking part in massive anti-Hamas protests across the Gaza Strip. Stand with them. Carry their voices. Don't abandon them. Ihab Hassan 

 

Hadeel Oueis, a U.S.-Syrian-based journalist, editor of Arabic-language Jusoor News reporting on Middle East news, has been informed by many dissidents in Gaza through phone interviews that the mass protest dubbed "Day of Rage" scheduled to take place on June 26, with the demand that Hamas disarm and step down, had their plans crushed before they even took to the streets. Although smaller protests elsewhere proceeded in some areas, organizers were warned by the terror group that anyone among the would-be demonstrators attempting to join would be subject to violent reprisals. 

 

One of the protest group's organizers, Mohammad Hussein Lafi described his arrival at a designated gathering point in central Gaza: it was already filled with Hamas security forces openly displaying their weapons. He was informed that cellphones had been confiscated from anyone suspected of being part of the protest movement; some among them physically assaulted and detained. A year earlier Lafi, a graduate of the Faculty of Physical Education at Gaza's Aqsa University, was arrested by Hamas accused of speaking out against the October 7 attacks among his friends.

 

He was "severely beaten and tortured during detention", which convinced him that an end must come for Hamas's rule in Gaza. With the scheduled protest deferred due to threats, a more discreet 'soft protest' took place on Friday at 10:00 p.m. that saw Gazans banging pots and pans, and whistling for an hour from within displacement camps and tents in response to an online call by organizers. An ad hoc demonstration the following day independent of organized plans took place by others.  

 

A funeral procession nearby planned protest sites took place with mourners carrying signs reading "God willing, Hamas out", "We are not pawns", and chants of "enough with the destruction" also took place. Hamas, according to Mustafa Asfour, a Gaza activist living in the U.K. for four years and one of the June 26 demonstration organizers, "launched a media campaign to discredit the movement, accusing it of betrayal and targeting anyone" participating. 

 

In the days leading up to the planned protest, Hamas pressured prominent families "to hold press conferences denouncing the June 26 movement"'; pro Hamas media then circulated statements presuming to be the names of major clans with the claims they opposed the protests. "Many of these families later issued official statements saying they had never released such declarations and rejecting the statements attributed to them", explained Mustafa Asfour. Threatening phone calls were received by families with warnings not to allow their children to participate, and displaced people were informed anyone who joined the protests would b e expelled from the camps.

 

NGO silence, argued Asfour, has emboldened Hamas. He and others had reached out, he explained, to Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, drawing their attention to the planned protests, warning against repression. Their efforts bore no fruit. Other than for the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, no response was ever received, but the Center's response was four lines to say the "matter raised by you is under follow-up"; a stock, non-committal response. 

 

Ms. Oueis accuses Hamas of making everyday life for Gazans miserable through aid diversion, heavy taxation and a harsh crackdown on dissent. In "The worst days of hunger and lack of food in Gaza", she said, residents were interviewed who alleged that Hamas "Hijacked every truck that came with food to Gaza, stored it in its own storage, stole this aid that's coming from international organizations, and kept it." The aid was handed out selectively "only to their soldiers", and pro-Hamas communities; those lacking a fighter in the family "won't get aid".

 

Hamas "captured and arrested" close to 200 activists and dissidents since the start of the ceasefire last fall, many accused of collaborating with Israel; some tortured to death. One of Jusoor's reporters was arrested, beaten "very badly and left unable to walk. He's paralyzed because he made this coverage, anti-Hamas coverage from Gaza", emphasized Ms. Oueis. Her reporting team interviewed Gazans who were tortured for posting criticism of Hamas on Facebook.  

 

Palestinian Hamas stand guard on the day of the handover of hostages held in Gaza since the deadly October 7 2023 attack, as part of a ceasefire and a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, February 22, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/File Photo

  

"Most of the Islamists of Gaza are pro-Hamas. Many deeply religious Muslims [are among those calling for change], a lot of the people who are going to protest and taking initiative in spreading the word against Hamas are religious Muslims [who reject Islamist politics."

"[Some Gazans openly argue that] It's time to stop the wars between Israel and Palestinians, and it's time to have peace with Israel." 

Hadeel Oueiss, Jusoor News

 

"[My motivation for helping with demonstrations is the] belief that civilians in Gaza have the right to express their voices peacefully, and to demand dignity, safety, and a better future."

"[The world should know that they demand] accountability, and the right of people to have a voice in decisions affecting their lives."

"I lost my home during the war, like many other families in Gaza. My experience, like many Palestinians here, has been shaped by years of difficult circumstances, but also by a strong sense of community and the desire to build a better future."

Kareem Joudeh, 30, formerly of northern Gaza, displaced to central Gaza, working with World Central Kitchen 

Hamas stand guard on the day of the release of Keith Siegel, a US-Israeli dual national hostage held in Gaza since the deadly October 7, 2023 attack, as part of a ceasefire and a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Gaza City, February 1, 2025. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem

 

TRUMP: RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW...

"I am sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job, not a single Hamas member will be safe if you don't do as I say."

"For the leadership, now is the time to leave Gaza, while you still have a chance. "

"Also, to the People of Gaza: A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD!"

"Make a SMART decision. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW, OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY LATER!" 

"Release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you. Only sick and twisted people keep bodies, and you are sick and twisted!"

U.S. President Donald J. Trump

President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, March 4, 2025.   Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP

"The enemy's leadership is trying to evade the agreement as the Prime Minister prioritizes political interests over the lives of his captives. The occupier continues to seek an American green light to escalate its aggression against our people."

"Israeli threats of war will bring them nothing but failure and will not lead to the release of their captives."

"We warn the families of Israeli captives that we still hold proof of life for those who remain alive. We are fully prepared for all possible scenarios."

"Any escalation of aggression against our people will result in the killing of enemy captives."

"The enemy has resorted to bullying, stalling, and reckless aggression. The enemy's threats are a sign of weakness and humiliation."

 Abu Ubaida, military spokesman, Hamas Al-Qassam Brigades

Relatives and supporters of Israelis held hostage in the Gaza Strip by Palestinian militants since October 2023, lift placards during a rally calling on the government for a deal that would bring all the remaining captives back, outside the prime minister residence in Jerusalem on March 2, 2025.

Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images

 

U.S. President Donald Trump's latest ultimatums have come and gone. Raising hopes within Israel that his threats against Hamas would sufficiently intimidate them to release their hostages from the hell finally of tunnel incarcerations, hunger, psychological torture, the physical toll of being tightly manacled day and night, the utter lack of breathable air, the absence of sun and daylight, and swiftly faltering health. The Hamas leadership responds to President Trump's threats with a show of unconcern; after all what could he possibly do to reach them...they're securely sheltered in Qatar, perhaps Turkey as well. Their terrorist troops are as expendable as is the Palestinian civilian population; there are always more to be had to replace them.

 

And so, the latest threat issued by the American president has come and gone. What will he do? What CAN he do? We remain to be informed not verbally but through responsive action that throws weight behind the words. The "best path to free the remaining Israeli hostages", Hamas spokesman Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua needled both the prime minister and the president, American and Israeli, is through negotiations on the completion of the first phase of the agreement on prisoner/hostage exchanges, then to go on to the second phase for which only limited preparatory talks have so far been completed.

 

Mr. Trump's 'last warning' was issued on Wednesday, following a meeting at the White House with eight released hostages. The White House revelation of its direct discussions with Hamas has been questioned; its popularity with the Israeli Cabinet has not been of the highest order. Of the hostages still held by Hamas, 24 are thought to be still alive from the time they were taken hostage during the October 7, 2023 invasion of southern Israel, an event that will live on in sadistic infamy for its rape, mutilation and slaughter of mostly Israeli citizens by thousands of Hamas, PIJ, and PFLP terrorist operatives.

 

That ordinary Palestinian citizens flooded through into Israel from Gaza after the terrorist horde, to take part in the bloody mayhem and destruction of farming villages and kibbutzim, as well as the violent abduction of children, the elderly, foreign farm workers, Israeli soldiers and girls and women is well enough known, along with the fact that the greater preponderance of Palestinians, both in Gaza and the West Bank under Hamas and Fatah respectively are in full support of the events of October 7.

 

Apart from the estimated number of still-living hostages, an additional 34 others who had been killed in the attack, or while in captivity are awaiting reunion with their families and a burial in Israel. Bodies of eight hostages and 24 living hostages were released under the agreement between Israel and Hamas, in exchange for close to two thousand Palestinian prisoners in the first 42-day phase of the ceasefire, ending Saturday. When Hamas cynically and cruelly delivered the stunned and starving Israelis with the pomp and ceremony of a victory reminiscent of Roman-era processions of captured leaders of rebellions.

Israeli hostages, from left, Eliya Cohen, Omer Shem Tov and Omer Wenkert display Hamas-issued certificates while they stand with Hamas militants on a stage in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, before being handed over to the Red Cross on Saturday. (Abdel Kareem Hana/The Associated Press)

A new U.S. plan for the second phase which would have Hamas release half of the remaining hostages immediately, the remainder when a permanent ceasefire is negotiated, has the approval of Israel, but Hamas has seen fit to reject the proposal on the grounds that it remains committed to the January agreement. The Trump administration pledged full support for Israel's accomplishing its war goals to achieve the final release of all the hostages. After which it plans to get on with its intention of eradicating Hamas in its entirety.

 

Egypt plans to host an international conference for the purpose of raising funds for a Gaza reconstruction plan proposed at the Arab Summit in Cairo. In cooperation with the United Nations, the conference goal is to secure financial pledges for the US$53 billion, five-year plan of reconstruction at the Arab League Summit in Cairo this week. In cooperation with the United Nations, the conference plans to secure financial pledges for the US$53 billion, five-year plan.

 

Demonstrators hold photos depicting the faces of Israeli hostages who are being held in the Gaza Strip, during a protest demanding their release from Hamas captivity, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, March 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

 

Canada's 'Two State Solution' For Thee, Not For Me

"[The Foreign Affairs Committee is called upon to] immediately study the issue of how the Government of Canada can advance the recognition of the State of Palestine within a two-state solution."

"[The motion] supports the recognition of a viable and independent State of Palestine."

Motion before the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Canadian Parliament

 

"[Trudeau] has said that the recognition of the state of Palestine will happen, not necessarily at the end of the process, but sometime during the process where the timing and conditions will be such that it will foster lasting peace."

"We need to know what that timing is, what the issues are and what the conditions should be, because we want a two-state solution."

Rob Oliphant, Toronto Liberal MP

 

"To veer from [Canada's traditional] path would reward violence and authoritarianism as a path to achieving statehood."

"[The committee adopted] a radical position [that parts-way from Canada's long-standing agreement that recognition can be achieved only as part of a negotiated agreement."

Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong 

"Canada's foreign policy should hold Hamas accountable, not legitimize them with status as a governing power."

"Put bluntly, they are the terrorists who murdered 1,200 Israelis, eight Canadians, continue to hold and executive hostages, and want to eradicate the Jewish people."

Liberal MP Marco Mendicino

"I can't pre-empt what the government will respond to. What I can tell you is our position is a two-state solution to this longstanding conflict."

"We believe that a two-state solution is the best path forward for lasting peace in the Middle East -- that's our position."

"How we end up getting there is something that obviously, is something (sic) that the government will continuously look at based on the situation on the ground."

Liberal MP Omar Alghabra introduced the motion. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

A motion tabled in the House of Commons presented by Liberal Member of Parliament Omar Alghabra called for Canada to recognize a Palestinian state, upending the past 75 years of tradition calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state, but only as a component of a two-state solution. Four Conservative votes were against but the motion passed by eight votes of members of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee in agreement representing the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois.

 

That the committee motion to fully recognize a 'Palestinian State' arrives mere weeks before the one-year anniversary of the October 7 savagery that rent apart farming communities in southern Israel when the Gaza-governing terrorist group Hamas led thousands of terrorists from Gaza across the border into Israel in a planned orgy of pillage, rape, torture, murder and hostage-taking, speaks volumes about the current government of Canada led by Justin Trudeau and the sensibilities of his Muslim-Canadian caucus members.

 

One can only wonder whether the Liberal party that forms Canada's current government is comprised of a majority of legislators under the illusion that their opinion on world matters has any merit, and in particular their decision that a two-state solution be achieved seeing Israel and the Arab Palestinians living in harmony is a true reflection of their mind processes, or that they are deliberately obtuse to the realities on the ground. 

 

That being primarily that the Hamas rulers of Gaza reject a two-state solution in their overt commitment to the destruction of Israel. As opposed to the covert commitment by the Fatah-led West Bank government of the Palestinian Authority under Mahmoud Abbas which also envisions and nurtures the prospect of destroying Israel, leaving the entire geography 'from the river Jordan to the Mediterranean sea' in Palestinian hands, giving them their desired one-state solution.

For almost a year now, pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel crowds have been marching through the streets of Canadian towns and cities shouting 'long live the Intifadeh!' and 'From the River to the Sea Palestine will be Free!', the obvious message of a one-state solution, the reality of which appears to have eluded the government of Justin Trudeau which prefers to see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. A caution it lifts from time to time, to criticize Israel and its leadership and to charge Israel, not Hamas, with war crimes.

Canada has no wish for a two-state solution for itself. The Bloc Quebecois in the House of Commons still opts for separation for Quebec from Canada. The province is the only one in Confederation that bills itself as a 'national' entity. It has extracted special powers given no other province in Canada, as its just due as one of the two founding 'nations' of the country. But its true agenda is to achieve full sovereignty, something that the government of Canada will never countenance.

Yet this Liberal government of Justin Trudeau has worked out a winning formula for Israel; to accept a two-state 'solution' despite since its founding in 1948, Fatah and later Hamas and other terrorist Palestinian groups have always violently challenged Israel's right to exist. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas pays out handsome rewards to the families of suicide bombers or those ending up in Israeli prisons for crimes against Israel. 

Palestinian school curricula teach the younger generations of Palestinians to hate Israel and Jews, viewing them as their oppressors living on land rightfully belonging to Arab Palestinians who claim sole possession of ancient Judean ancestral lands -- as well as their traditions and history. According to the PA even that world-renown Jewish pacifist-scholar Yeshua, was actually 'Palestinian'. But only in the sense that during the Roman Empire Judean lands were named a Roman province called 'Palestine'.

Yet Justin Trudeau's government has arrived at the solution to the Arab Palestinians' aggrieved victimhood which considers the rebirth of Israel a 'disaster'. A day celebrated by Jews the world over as having finally, after millennia of a far-reaching, forced diaspora, Jews finally had a homeland of their own returned to their possession. That day one of mourning as the 'Nakba', memorializing the loss of Arab Palestinians' aspirations of their own state. 

The Palestinians created their Nakba when they rejected the Partition Plan offered by the United Nations to both Jews and Arabs, when the Jews were ecstatic about their return to Zion, and the Arabs awaited the onslaught of the combined Arab armies to vanquish and destroy the newborn state of Israel. They have never stopped trying. While most surrounding Arab/Muslim states have finally surrendered to the reality of Israel's presence, the 'Palestinians' forge on in their aspiration to kill Jews and destroy their state.

“Palestine will remain ours. And if anyone were to leave, it will be the occupying usurpers,” he declared.

UN Photo/Loey Felipe

Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine, addresses the general debate of the General Assembly’s seventy-ninth session.

Hate Crimes in Canada

"The London Police Service recognizes every person's right to freedom of opinion, expression and peaceful assembly and are committed to protecting these rights."

"We will continue to take all measures necessary to ensure that citizens within our community feel safe and secure. Acts in violation of the law in the name of any cause will not be tolerated."

"All such acts will be investigated, and charges will be laid where appropriate."
London Police Service

Dr. Tarek Loubani

"Once we have the allegations, once we see the evidence, then I'll make my defence, but until then, I'm not going to make my defence publicly."

"At the end of the day, for the police to show up at my home multiple times trying to arrest me over what if the allegations are true is fundamentally ketchup on a wall it really does speak of attempting to sort of silence our protests and silence our dissent."

"Today, I will be arrested by police in London, Canada. The police will put me in jail indefinitely because I will not stop protesting against MP Peter Fragiskatos, who refuses to call for a ceasefire against the civilians in Gaza."

Dr. Tarek Loubani, 42,  practitioner at the London Health Sciences Centre

"I've had many phone calls over the past several weeks, and in particular, this week, with members of the community who do want to see the Canadian government call for a ceasefire. Those conversations will continue."

"[The office had seen subsequent incidents of vandalism and a recent incident in which someone tried to] forcibly enter the office and occupy it."

"Who knows what could have transpired at that point in time? Certainly, the safety of our staff would have been compromised, and that's not something that's acceptable."

"For that reason, I haven't had conversations with those protesting in front of the office. But I have had many, many conversations with Londoners who do want to speak to me and have a view that Canada should call a ceasefire."

London North Centre MP Peter Fragiskatos

About a dozen people spent the day outside Liberal PM Peter Fragiskatos' office demanding he pressure the government to call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. (Michael Lacasse / CBC News)

Dr. Tarek Loubani, an emergency doctor also described as a humanitarian activist, was charged with vandalism for spraying a Member of Parliament's constituency office in London, Ontario at the time when a pro-Palestinian protest took place in the city last month, following Israel's invasion of Gaza to rout out Hamas after the terrorist group had entered southern Israel, its operatives driving and marching into Israeli border towns, villages and kibbutzim, slaughtering civilians at will during a surprise attack.

 

October 7 turned out to be a horrific day for Israelis where children were grenaded and burned to death with their parents, huddling in fear when Hamas unleashed a sadistic storm of death on the Jewish population, where girls and women were raped and sodomized, infants killed, soldiers in nearby military outposts killed. As they stormed through the kibbutzim and towns, the terrorists killed anyone in sight.

 

Others appeared at a music festival taking place near a kibbutz, where hundreds of young Israeli men and women had congregated in celebration of peace, listening to music, dancing and partying. In the towns and villages, sirens were first heard in the early morning hours warning of incoming rockets from Gaza, but this turned out to be no ordinary, familiar rocket attack. The invasion of terrorists followed by ordinary Palestinians converged on the towns, on the music festival, slaughtering and raping.

 

At the music festival alone, well over three hundred Israelis were murdered. The kibbutzim and villages suffered hundreds more grisly deaths, approaching cars were stopped by the terrorists, their occupants shot dead, people waiting at bus stops in groups, shot dead. Families sitting at their breakfast tables were bound, children forced to watch as their parents were mutilated, their parents helpless as their children were mutilated.

 

Before the defence forces were mobilized and able to move in to rescue those who survived, some 240 Israeli children, infants, elderly, inform, girls and women, and foreign agricultural workers were taken as hostages into Gaza, some suffering grave wounds from the attacks, placed on display to cheering crowds that surrounded the Hamas attackers in celebration of their 'victory' over Israelis. 

 

Before the Israel Defense Forces even moved into Gaza, Palestinians living abroad organized impromptu protests over Israel's 'genocide' of Palestinians.

 

The one that took place in London, Ontario at a much later date, included Dr. Loubani who along with several other men  unpacked bottles of ketchup in lieu of human blood, to spray on the front door and windows of the MP's office as 'punishment' and threats for his not having supported calls for Liberal parliamentarians to demand a ceasefire to be formally announced by the government of Canada.

 

Dr. Loubani had handed out bottles of ketchup at the October 22 protest, encouraging others to deface the MP's office. All four involved were identified by police. Dr. Loubani was arrested and placed in prison overnight. He then appeared in court by video from police headquarters, and released the following day with an undertaking with no conditions, to reappear in court on Dec. 6. 

 

Police said the three other men would not be charged. Dr. Loubani has a  history as an 'activist'. His activism is focused at the present time on the Israel-Gaza war. He is of Palestinian origin. Ten years ago, while in Egypt with another man, they were both arrested by Egyptian police and held in prison for a period of time. Dr. Loubani was accused at that time by Egyptian authorities of being involved with the Muslim Brotherhood, outlawed in Egypt.

 

Pro-Palestinian activists are enraged over Mr. Fragiskatos's unwillingness to align himself with the group of Liberal members of Parliament who have called upon Prime Minister Trudeau to declare Canada's position calling for a ceasefire, a position which, if taken, would see Canada break away from all of its collegial member-states in the G-7, and certainly differentiating it from the American position.

On November 9, the Fragiskatos London constituency office was once again splashed on an exterior wall, this time with red paint. In the incident, no arrests have yet been made, the perpetrators unidentified.

 

London North Centre MP Peter Fragiskatos's office can be seen here in the aftermath of vandalism his office says took place on Thursday evening. (Office of Peter Fragiskatos)