What do Gazans really think today?
To hear it from Mohammed Altooll, a Gazan political activist, presently living in Belgium, who co-founded the movement, “We Want to Live,” you’d almost be convinced that, after the last two and a half years of a brutal war, initiated by Hamas, ordinary Gaza citizens, have finally seen the light, realizing they were duped.
And why shouldn’t they feel that way, given that most of them are homeless, destitute and have lost family members? Promised a lasting victory, which would finally free them from their stateless plight, their Hamas terrorist rulers spent 20 years, meticulously preparing for the demise of their neighbors next door, assuring that the support of Gaza citizens would be rewarded.
If only all Gazans had real remorse. While some may, others have brazenly recorded their real sentiments. A recent clip showed an angry Gaza, screaming, “We are the ones who launched this war, and we will be the ones to end it. Until the last drop of our blood, we keep offering and sacrificing until all of us die for the sake of Allah. We are the lions, we are the heroes, we are the conquerors.”
Gazan man:
— Kosher (@koshercockney) May 21, 2025
“We are the ones who launched this war, and we will be the ones to end it. Until the last drop of our blood, we keep offering, and sacrificing until all of us die, for the sake of Allah”
pic.twitter.com/fqusBG4DHZ
How many feel like this delusional lunatic? Is he an anomaly or does he represent a significant portion of Gazans who are willing to go for broke when it comes to the destiny that they believe they are called to fulfill – annihilating the Jewish homeland?
Altooll, relates some of his conversations with local Gazans, whom he describes as being “focused primarily on survival – securing food, water and safety for their children, rather than participating in political or organizational events linked to Hamas.”
Consequently, after “economic collapse and humanitarian suffering, including unemployment, collapsing infrastructure and deep psychological exhaustion, Altooll paints a completely different picture than the one of an unhinged Gazan who is far from the brokenness and war fatigue of others who have been at the receiving end of Israel’s justified response to a savage massacre.
So, the question is, whom do you believe, and how many are as unrelenting as the man in the clip who, not only is not focused on survival, but sounds willing and ready to sacrifice his life for a cause he believes is far from hopeless?
That is the question with which we are left. As a world, untouched by Israel’s enemies, who won’t rest until they accomplish their goals, continues to insist that we live alongside of people who are dead set on our end, do we capitulate and give them a second chance? Or do we take the word of the man who vows to finish us all off?
What would you do?
It’s easy for advocates, who are insulated from the consequences that are faced by Israelis, to encourage co-existence with human butchers, but how quick would they be to take their own advice?
The humanitarian voice of Mohammed Altooll, in the form of an opinion piece, is coming from Belgium, not from Gaza. That’s quite a distance from the rocket fire of the Middle East.
And while he is, likely, a passionate activist, on behalf of his people, does he only hear the cries of Gazans who may be disillusioned by their political leaders?
I can only wonder if Alltooll has also heard the immutable voices of those who describe themselves as the “lions, heroes and conquerors who are ready to drop blood for the sake of Allah?”
What does he have to say about them? Does he acknowledge their existence or is he unaware that they are still committed to the fight?
Alltooll speaks of analysts who are under the belief that Hamas might be “facing its most serious internal challenge,” partially due to the lack of support by Gazans who became the victims of this great “final solution” experiment.
But when all reports state that they refuse to hand over their weapons or seize control of Gaza, what are the rest of us supposed to believe? Even Israelis, in their most compassionate moments, are not gullible enough to think that Gazans have learned the ultimate lesson of what happens when they try to overpower us.
While it’s entirely possible that there has been some needed introspection of Gazans, who outsourced their well-being and future generations to bloodthirsty terrorists, let’s say that the nation of Israel is not up for wiping the slate clean at this early juncture.
As sad as that may sound, most people would feel the same way if they had been the ones who had endured the heavy price over the last two and a half years as daily life had to be navigated over the sleepless nights of constant rocket fire, the death of 1200 innocent civilians and 942 military personnel, as of this writing.
Add to that the many failed businesses that did not survive the years of war, the devastating effect on Israeli children who lived with the fear of constant sirens and the halt of their education.
And before anyone says, that Gazan children lived with the same hardships, it would be good to remember that Israel did not start this war, nor did they spend 20 years planning a sophisticated attack which they thought would result in the destruction of their southern neighbors.
Life would have continued as it was. Gazans would have been able to secure employment in Israel, their homes would still be intact, their dead children would still be alive and a peaceful coexistence might have led to their own prosperous and independent state.
If all those dreams went up in smoke, it was their own doing and not ours. It’s a funny thing, but when you plot evil against the Jews, it usually ends up coming back on your own head, and that is something that would be a worthwhile lesson for the enemies of Israel to finally realize.
The suffering of Gaza, impacting on its most vulnerable citizens – women and children, as stated by Alltooll, is most regrettable, but they, along with their male counterparts, must come to the conclusion that abandoning the murderous aspirations of those who have led them down the garden path (in this case, filled with thorns) is the best strategy they can adopt going forward.
Because short of that, they will only find themselves in greater despair than what they’re experiencing now.
A former Jerusalem elementary and middle-school principal who made Aliyah in 1993 and became a member of Kibbutz Reim but now lives in the center of the country with her husband. She is the author of Mistake-Proof Parenting, based on the principles from the book of Proverbs - available on Amazon.
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