A bizarre alliance to shield Hamas? Zachary Foster, one of the biggest clowns and least informed or compelling commentators in the Israel and Palestine space, and a living demonstration of how “anti-Zionism” has devolved into cultism, launched into a hate- and insult-filled tirade against me after I published an op-ed in The New York Times. He is frothing at the mouth with deranged language and rage, regurgitating incoherent talking points to say that Hamas are the valiant, amazing angels of reasonable compromise, and Israel is the evil root of all ills in Gaza; the predictable low-grade commentary one has come to expect from unhinged oracles of the “pro-Palestine” industrial complex. This is especially true of certain Jews who now express a violent rebellion against Zionism and Israel, due to feelings of guilt or “they lied to me at summer camp” vibes that many anti-Zionist Jews frequently express. Hilariously, the post was immediately reposted by Hamas’s chief lawyer in Europe, Ramy Abdu, who started the fake “EuroMed Monitor for Human Rights,” and another voice strangely obsessed with shielding Hamas from accountability and blame for Gaza’s destruction and the devastation of Palestinian national aspirations and hopes. Isn’t it ironic: an anti-Zionist Jew, a Hamas lawyer, and a firebrand in journalism, all in a furious frenzy to delegitimize me and my arguments – and ultimately, protect Hamas.

Imagine [hopefully] reading a piece that calls for Gaza to become the pride and joy of the Palestinian people and a hub of compelling Palestinian national identity by rejuvenating the territory, embracing peace, and rejecting a terror organization that admitted to refusing Gaza development offers worth billions, including an airport and seaport, only to proclaim that the op-ed is "pro-genocide." And how was this brilliant conclusion reached? Because the article I published in The New York Times didn't do the ubiquitous "everything has to be Israel's fault" that seems to be the only line of thinking within the supposed "pro-Palestine" camp. Speak to Palestinians in Gaza who aren’t Hamas or making content for the “pro-Palestine” community abroad, and you hear the same thing again and again. They describe, plainly and without theatrics, how Hamas halted Gaza’s development and crippled the broader Palestinian national project since its founding in 1987. They do not need to mention Israel in every sentence to sound authentic to outsiders, including other Palestinians or non-Palestinians alike. They simply recount their lived reality. For Gazans, Hamas is the central problem. There were no Israeli soldiers inside Gaza before October 7. The blockade that everyone loves to speak about was imposed after Hamas’s cross‑border abduction of an Israeli soldier in June 2006 and tightened after the group’s violent takeover of the territory on June 14, 2007. From that point forward, Hamas massively built tunnels, fired rockets, smuggled weapons, waged repeated rounds of conflict, and declared its intent to “destroy” Israel, while turning Gaza into a fortress of armed “resistance” that got Gaza destroyed, tens of thousands killed, millions displaced, and wasted billions of dollars. Hamas imposed punishing taxes on Gazans to fund its terror; stole diesel from Gaza’s only power plant and caused chronic power outages; suppressed women’s freedoms; blocked travel for anyone it disliked; and routinely killed, tortured, jailed, beat, and humiliated countless Gazans. Research the political and cultural divides between Gaza and the West Bank, and you quickly see how many Gazans resent West Bankers for cheering Hamas and October 7. These dynamics are complex, real, and central to understanding Palestinian politics, yet they are brushed aside or overlooked to satisfy low‑information audiences who consume the toxic narratives produced by the "pro-Palestine" industrial complex. Some people are simply uninformed. Some are unsophisticated. And then there are those who know exactly what they are doing and deliberately twist, manipulate, and distort reality to manufacture ignorance and maintain obedience and Orwellian-grade compliance among the crowds.