Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Starship.paint (talk | contribs) at 06:52, 1 February 2024 (Remove opinion article used for facts). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This article has an unclear citation style. The reason given is: The flow reads as that of an essay instead of encylopedic, and some claims made in the article are not mentioned in the attached source/s. The references used may be made clearer with a different or consistent style of citation and footnoting. (January 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until conditions to do so are met. (January 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Denial of the October 7 attacks is the denial that Hamas attacked Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023, or the denial that certain acts attributed to Hamas were committed of which there is evidence of, including sexual and gender-based violence and immolation and mutilation of bodies.

Following the atrocities carried out by Hamas on October 7, denialism has emerged on a global scale. Individuals worldwide including politicians, journalists and other public figures, have denied or downplayed the atrocities Hamas committed, despite extensive evidence documenting the attack. Various versions of what transpired on that day are being circulated, including the claim that Israel orchestrated the incident, blaming Israel for the deaths of its own civilians.

Some people within this growing denial movement, often associated with conspiracy theories and Holocaust denial, say that the attack was a "false flag" operation orchestrated by Israel, potentially with collaboration from the United States. This narrative has gained traction on social media platforms like TikTok, Reddit, and 4chan. The denial movement has manifested in real-world events, with demonstrators at anti-Israel protests making claims of Israel staging the attack, spreading false and unverified accusations and instances of posters depicting hostages being removed in cities such as London and Chicago.

The Palestinian public's response to the attacks and the subsequent Israeli military campaign in Gaza is marked by a widespread denial of the atrocities of October 7, along with a considerable praise for Hamas. A recent poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research revealed that only 7% of Palestinians believed that Hamas committed atrocities on October 7, over 70% of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip expressed support for Hamas' decision to carry out the attack.

Scholars have compared it to Holocaust denialism.

Background

On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched a  surprise attack on Israel. It began at 06:30 am, when thousands of rockets were launched from Gaza to Israel. Simultaneously an estimate of 1,500 terrorists breached the Gaza-Israel boarder, attacking Israeli civilian communities, military bases and a music festival.

The Hamas attack on civilians included not only murders but documented sexual offenses against the women they encountered and towards men, immolation, mutilation of body parts and kidnapping 240 Israeli civilians into Gaza. Following the attack, Hamas published photos of beheaded soldiers and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on X (formerly Twitter) pictures of murdered and burnt babies. Although it has been reported that babies have been beheaded by Hamas as part of the attack, no substantial evidence had been presented public regarding the claims.

Cases of denial

By Hamas leaders

On November 7, Moussa Abu Marzouk, a member of Hamas's political bureau, stated in a BBC interview that Hamas did not target women, children, or civilians in the October 7 attack.

Hamas leader Khaled Mashal denied transgressions against Israeli civilians on the October 7 attack during an interview with Al-Arabiya Network. According to Mashal, Hamas only attacked Israeli soldiers and referred to the thousands of Israeli civilians murders simply as casualties.

Hamas released a document titled "our narrative...Operation Al-Aqsa Flood". In the 16 page report Hamas justifies their attack on October 7 and denies the claims they committed atrocities on that day. The document claims that the attacks on October 7 were solely toward Israeli soldiers and denies attacks and murders of civilians, raids on homes and kibbutzim in Israel and the kidnapping of 240 people, including women and children.

Palestinian public figures

On 11 November 2023, the Palestinian Authority (PA) published an official statement denying Hamas' involvement in the Re'im music festival massacre on October 7. Later on they reportedly withdrew the earlier statement denying Hamas's involvement in the massacre and removed the published document. They did not publish an official apology or correction.

Israeli public figures

MK Iman Khatib-Yasin expressed her doubts on an interview On November 5 regarding the October 7 atrocities. Following her claim, MK Mansour Abbas, leader of the Islamist Ra’am party, called for her immediate resignation. Later, after personally seeing the evidence, she apologized for her doubt in Hamas's actions.

International politicians

Sira Rego, a Spanish politician of Palestinian ancestry and a member of the European Parliament, stated that "Palestine has the right to exist after decades of occupation, apartheid, and exile." hours after the initial attack on October 7, leading to backlash from Israeli media who accused her of defending the attacks. Rego was later one of two parliamentarians who refused to sign a statement condemning the massacre.

Universities

A University of Minnesota professor was accused of antisemitism by colleagues and university staff following a social media post she made expressing her support for Palestine, and claiming "In the past decades, all forms of Palestinian resistance and solidarity with Palestine have been further criminalized or violently repressed." in regards to the October 7. In a summoning with university heads, she defended her remarks and stated she had no knowledge of rape used by Hamas during the attacks, equating it with false accusations of rape against black men in the United States.

Social Media

Some social media remarks have included denials of the October 7 attacks with some claiming they were an "Israeli false-flag operation", along with Holocaust denial and revisionism. During the Kidnapped from Israel campaign, people who took down posters of kidnapped Israeli civilians alleged that there were no hostages.

Palestinian public opinion

A December 2023 poll by the Palestianian Center for Policy and Survey Research showed that seven percent of Palestinians believed Hamas committed atrocities during the October 7 attack, and that 82% of West Bank Palestinians believed it was in Hamas' best interest to conduct the attack compared to 57% of Gazans believing it. Most respondents of the poll claimed they did not see footage of the attacks on social media.

In addition, many Palestinians find it hard to believe the accusations of atrocities committed by Hamas during the October 7 attacks.

Reasons for denialism

Antisemitism

According to an Israel Hayom article, One reason for the denial among Hamas supporters is to portray Israel as the culprit. By absolving Hamas of guilt, they attempt to shift blame onto Israel. This has been likened to, Mahmoud Abbas remarks when he accused Jews of being responsible for the Holocaust, allegedly to undermine the moral legitimacy of the State of Israel. This tactic is said to be also used to deflect attention from Palestinian involvement in the Holocaust, including Amin al-Husseini's role in hindering Jewish emigration to pre-state Israel and his direct involvement in the Holocaust. In a similar manner, supporters of Hamas now accuse Israel of harming its own people or fabricating their victimization by the terrorist organization. This strategy aims, according to reports, to construct a narrative in which Israel is portrayed as the antagonist. This narrative allows anti-Semitic individuals worldwide to express their hatred towards Jews more comfortably. If Jews are cast as villains, it can be seen as morally justifiable to harbor animosity towards them, support Hamas, and view support for the Jews and the State of Israel as immoral.

Misinformation

Misinformation can take various forms, from using misleading language to intentionally omitting crucial facts while emphasizing others.

The 2023 Harvard Caps Harris poll found that 51% of individuals aged 18-24 believed that the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas were justified.  The report claims that these beliefs may have been influenced by misinformation. In contrast, only 9% of voters aged 65 and older shared the same view, and this percentage decreased steadily among different age groups.

Responses

Due to the denialism that raised in regard to the massacre toward Israelis on October 7, and in attempt to counter the denial or downplay of the events, the Israeli government presented a 43-minute film to dozens of foreign journalists. The movie presented live footage captured by security cameras, body cameras worn by the Hamas operatives themselves, social media and footage from personal mobile phones that documented the events in real time. The content involved the loss of young lives and the act of beheading victims. According to The Time Magazine, The documentation is essential as the spread of denial about the October 7 events rise on social media.

References

1. ^ "Hamas leader refuses to acknowledge killing of civilians in Israel". 2023-11-06. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
2. ^ Algemeiner, The (2023-12-15). "Palestinian Authority Leaders Deny October 7 Massacre Took Place - Algemeiner.com". www.algemeiner.com. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
3. "Evidence suggests dozens of Israeli women were raped or mutilated by Hamas". NBC News. 2023-12-06. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
4. ^ "Rape, mutilation & worse: Accounts of Hamas sexual crimes come to fore". The Times of India. 2023-12-07. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
5. Chotiner, Isaac (2023-12-10). "How Hamas Used Sexual Violence on October 7th". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
6. ^ "Israel Gaza: Hamas raped and mutilated women on 7 October, BBC hears". 2023-12-05. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
7. Veszprémy, László Bernát (2023-11-15). "7 October Massacre Denial Rampant in the West | Hungarian Conservative". www.hungarianconservative.com. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
8. "Too many people are in denial about events of October 7th, says Israeli ambassador". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
9. Ynet (2024-01-22). "Denial of Hamas' October 7 massacre spreads in US". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
10. ^ Dwoskin, Elizabeth (2024-01-22). "Growing Oct. 7 'truther' groups say Hamas massacre was a false flag". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
11. "For most Palestinians, October 7's savagery is literally unbelievable. Blame the TV news?".
12. Algemeiner, The (2023-12-14). "Palestinians Largely Support Oct. 7 Massacre, Deny Hamas Guilty of War Crimes: Poll - Algemeiner.com". www.algemeiner.com. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
13. ^ "Palestinians largely support October 7 massacre, deny atrocities - poll". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2023-12-13. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
14. ^ Prince, Cathryn (2024-01-29). "Are conspiracy theories about Oct. 7 a new form of Holocaust denial? Experts weigh in". Times of Israel. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
15. Rubin, Shira; Morris, Loveday (2023-10-31). "How Hamas broke through Israel's border defenses during Oct. 7 attack". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-01-29.
16. McKernan, Bethan (2024-01-18). "Evidence points to systematic use of rape and sexual violence by Hamas in 7 October attacks". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
17. Rennolds, Nathan. "Hamas used horrific sexual violence, raping and mutilating Israeli women and girls on October 7: NYT". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
18. Percival, Richard. "Israeli Police have evidence Hamas terrorists raped men on October 7, activists claim". www.thejc.com. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
19. "Unverified reports of '40 babies beheaded' in Israel-Hamas war inflame social media". NBC News. 2023-10-12. Retrieved 2024-01-29.
20. "Putting the Hamas Massacre, and Hamas Denials, in Context | The Washington Institute". www.washingtoninstitute.org. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
21. "Hamas releases propaganda doc denying Oct 7 atrocities". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2024-01-22. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
22. "Hamas releases report clarifying Operation Al-Aqsa Flood". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
23. "i24NEWS". www.i24news.tv. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
24. Eichner, Itamar (2023-11-20). "Palestinian Authority quietly removes official denial of Re'im massacre". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
25. "Arab MK apoligizes for denial of October 7th horrors". www.israelnationalnews.com. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
26. "Ra'am party chief calls on MK to resign for claiming Hamas 'didn't slaughter babies'".
27. "Arab MK apoligizes for denial of October 7th horrors". www.israelnationalnews.com. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
28. ^ "La prensa de Israel destaca que la ministra Sira Rego "justificó la masacre del 7-O" cometida por Hamás". El Español (in Spanish). 2023-11-21. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
29. "Professor, former regent allege faculty post on U of M website is 'antisemitic'". MPR News. 2023-12-12. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
30. "US professor who denies Oct. 7 rape cases up for top role at campus diversity office".
31. "Press Release: Public Opinion Poll No (90) | PCPSR". pcpsr.org. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
32. Tabachnick, Cara; Wassef, Khaled (2023-10-08). "Middle East leaders praise and condemn Hamas attacks against Israel - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
33. "Hezbollah's Nasrallah Praises 'Heroic' Oct 7 Hamas Attack, Says It Was '100% Palestinian'". Haaretz. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
34. Says, Psalm100al. "Why are the October 7 atrocities being denied?". Israel Today. Retrieved 2024-01-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
35. "US antisemitism up 337% since October 7 in all-time record, ADL says".
36. "Israel-Hamas war: Denying Oct. 7 massacre is new form of antisemitism". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2023-11-26. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
37. "Inside the Israel-Hamas Information War". TIME. 2023-12-22. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
38. "October 7 conspiracies spreading in U.S. - report". i24NEWS. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
39. Cite error: The named reference :16 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
40. "Harvard Caps Harris Poll" (PDF).
41. Carroll, Rory (2023-10-23). "Israel shows footage of Hamas killings 'to counter denial of atrocities'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
42. "The Worst 45 Minute Film You Will Ever See". TIME. 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-24.

• 2023 Hamas attack on Israel
• Denialism