(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Hamas was unpopular... surveys showed Gazans cared more about fighting poverty than armed resistance [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-10-20 Article by Nathan French , Associate Professor in Comparative Religion at Miami University in Oxford, OH. He is also an affiliate in International Studies in the Department of Global and Intercultural Studies and an affiliate with the LIFE Research Lab in the John W. Altman Institute for Entrepreneurship's Center for Social Entrepreneurship. He completed his PhD in Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2013. French's research interests closely parallel his teaching interests. His research background is in Islamic law, Islamic legal theory, Islamic theology, and contemporary Middle East history. Within these, Dr. French's research explores how contemporary Jihadi-Salafi movements, such as al-Qa'ida and ISIS, appropriate and re-interpret Islamic law and theology for their sociopolitical projects. He is the author of one monograph, And God Knows the Martyrs: Theodicy, Violence, and Asceticism in Jihadi-Salafism. His work has appeared in Religion Dispatches and the Journal of Religion and Violence. ■ TheConversation 18 Oct 2023 ■ . Amid the escalation of the Israel-Hamas war, observers in the region and internationally continue to make assumptions about Gazan public support for Hamas. Mistaken assumptions such as those by U.S. presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, claiming that all Gazans are “antisemitic,” or those that blame Gazans for “electing Hamas” may shape debates not only on how the war is perceived, but also over relief plans for Gazans in the months ahead. Any reconstruction efforts or aid distribution might be weighed against fears of Hamas insurgents within the Gazan population. In my own research into Jihadi-Salafism and Islamism, I found that militant movements provoked military interventions to exploit the chaos that ensues. Moreover, such groups often claim to govern in the “legitimate” interests of those they dominate even if those populations reject their rule. As several commentators have observed, Hamas likely hopes to not just encourage a disproportionate response from Israel, but also to use the violent aftermath of intervention to cultivate continued Gazan dependence upon it and to distract from its own domestic policy failures. Politicians and Gaza Leaders on both sides of the conflict have tried to make justifications for their actions. Often, they use their own perception of Gazan public opinion to support their own policy objectives. For example, Ismail Haniyeh, chief of Hamas’ political bureau, claimed that Hamas’ actions represented Gazans and “the entire Arab Muslim community.” For Haniyeh, Hamas’ usage of violence was on behalf of Palestinians who had been assaulted in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in September 2023, or have suffered at the hands of Israeli security forces, or for the settlers in the West Bank. Israeli President Isaac Herzog, meanwhile, suggested that all Gazans bore collective responsibility for Hamas. As a result, he concluded, Israel would act to preserve its own self-interest against Gaza and its people. The Biden administration, careful not to condemn the Israeli bombardment, has sought a broader approach toward the escalation. In an interview and on social media, U.S. President Joseph Biden observed that “the overwhelming majority of Palestinians had nothing to do with Hamas’ appalling attacks, and [instead] are suffering as a result of them.” Such suffering, Biden noted, required the eventual lifting of the “complete siege” implemented by Israel against Gaza. In each example, politicians used their assumptions about Gazans to support their policies. But the people in Gaza experience these policies far differently. Gazans hold mixed views of Hamas Reviewing Gazan public opinion over time reveals an ongoing sense of hopelessness living under the Israeli blockade. A June 2023 poll conducted by Khalil Shikaki, professor of political science and director of the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, indicated that 79% of Gazans supported armed opposition to Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. A Washington Institute poll from July 2023 found that only 57% of Gazans held a “somewhat positive” opinion of Hamas. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/10/20/2200522/-Hamas-was-unpopular-surveys-showed-Gazans-cared-more-about-fighting-poverty-than-armed-resistance?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/