Some notes on Hamas and the ongoing capitalist conflict

The origins of Hamas have their roots in the Muslim Brotherhood, led in Gaza by Sheikh Yassin. Not only was he allowed to openly spread his Islamist message while Israel was conducting assassinations of members of the PLO, but Yassin was also permitted to form Mujama al-Islamiya as an official charity that would eventually evolve into Hamas (on.wsj.com/3wDFzfV).

Hamas is an abbreviation for 'Islamic resistance movement' but also means 'force and bravery' and has its origins in the Muslim Brotherhood movement. Hamas are not only anti-Zionist but also anti-Semitic, and are trying to bridge the divide that separated Palestinian nationalism and Islamism, a twin track policy of a national liberation struggle and a jihad which aims 'to raise the banner of Allah over every inch of Palestine' (Covenant of the Hamas, 1988). Hamas are wealthy because they have rich backers from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states such as Qatar.

'..Hamas was a legitimate government, democratically elected a year before the violent events of 2007, getting 76 seats out of the 132-seat chamber. But not for Mohammed and many other residents of the strip, who throughout the years staged multiple protests against the Hamas government.   “Democracy was over soon after the elections. First of all, they expelled the officials of their rivals to make sure that another round of elections will never take place again and, secondly, in the process of doing so, they killed dozens of people, many of whom were civilians. They never had the right to act this way”  (Mid East Discourse, 10 June 2020)

Hamas got rich as Gaza was plunged into poverty

With multi-million-dollar land deals, luxury villas and black market fuel from Egypt, Gaza's rulers made billions while the rest of the population struggled with 38-percent poverty and 40-percent unemployment.

'Some 2.54 million people in Israel, including 1.118 million children, live in poverty, according to a report released yesterday by the Latet non-profit aid organisation. Nearly 652,000 families – nearly 25 per cent of households in the country – are living in poverty, the study found' (Middle East Monitor, 21 December 2021).

Despite the media narrative, this is not a conflict between Jews and Arabs, but between different capitalist factions fighting over the oil resources and strategic routes. Jewish and Arab workers have no interest in fighting each other, but they have a common interest in uniting with other workers in abolishing capitalism and establishing socialism.

Neither Israel, Nor Palestine: No War but the Class War.