Palestinian glorification of violence is nothing new. Illustrative banner of terrorists and Dome of the Rock. By Joshua Spurlock
As though it’s not disturbing enough to claim a terrorist as a member of a group, Hamas took it to another level by praising a Palestinian terrorist just hours after he murdered two Israelis, including a 60-year-old woman, in a shooting attack in Jerusalem. The Ma’an News Agency reported that Hamas issued a statement in which the terror group “proudly announced” that the member of their group had “died a martyr.”
It wasn’t only Hamas praising the terrorist, as Israeli Prime Minister spokesman Ofir Gendelman—who speaks Arabic—tweeted that the political faction of Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas “mourns the terrorist… and expresses support for the attack.” And that wasn’t all. “Abbas’s ‘moderate’ Fatah org vehemently denies that the PA has condemned today’s terror attack in Jerusalem,” said Gendelman on Twitter, who also tweeted that Palestinians were handing out candy in honor of the terrorism.
The United States, meanwhile, not only strongly condemned the attack but also took offense at the celebration of the murders. “There is absolutely no justification for the taking of innocent lives,” said a press release from the US State Department posted to their website. “We also condemn the statements glorifying this reprehensible and cowardly attack.”
The Americans also condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the terror shooting. “We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those killed and our hopes for a quick and full recovery for those wounded,” said the statement.
That stood in strong contrast to Hamas’ words, which Ma’an said included calling the terrorist one of the “great figures of Jerusalem.”
Separately, in a statement issued on the Hamas military wing’s website, the Palestinian organization called the terrorist a martyr and claimed that the murder of a civilian woman, a police officer and the wounding of half a dozen others was a “natural reaction” to “crimes” against the Al-Aqsa Mosque, of which Palestinians have long falsely accused Israel of committing.
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, October 9, 2016)