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The self-hatred which allows Hamas terrorists to live under the earth

Tunnel used to hold Israeli hostages under Khan Younis in southern Gaza (Photo: Screenshot)

After having recently watched the footage that revealed the labyrinth of tunnels where Hamas mastermind, Yahya Sinwar has been hiding out, for months, it occurs to you that there has to be a fair amount of self-hatred going on in someone who would choose to live fifty meters under the earth, in a dark, damp dungeon of one’s own making.

How else can anyone explain the choice to give up a normal and happy life, along with the comfort of family and friends? Turning one’s back on the beauty of nature, the wonders of exploring all the resources and amazing sites that are above the earth, in favor of spending years, digging through dark passages, to create miles of safe refuge, after committing heinous atrocities, demands an unexplainable masochistic impulse to which no sane person can relate.

Yet this is the picture and the reality of Hamas terrorists, whose intense hatred for the Jewish state has resulted in their self-inflicted punishment of missing out on life and the joy of living it to the fullest. Seeing these tunnels, especially the one that housed Sinwar, provides an insightful but dismal window into the twisted and demonic mindset of these men who have dedicated their entire being to destruction, terror, killing, internal darkness and everything associated with death and carnage.

The real deception here is what this horrific existence, chosen by these perpetrators, has caused them to willingly endure, all in their aspiration and hope to annihilate the people they despise. Most of us have heard how unforgiveness, harbored in the heart of a person, hurts them more than the one they are incapable of forgiving, because whatever festers inside someone also has the capacity to injure them physically as well as mentally and emotionally.

In this case, dedicated Hamas operatives have made the decision that they deserve the worst because that is exactly what they have given themselves. With no guarantee that they will prevail in their goal of taking over the land of Israel, which would necessitate the genocide of millions of Jews, they are willing to invest years of their lives, delaying or even giving up on the many joyous milestones marked by most of us, including the completion of higher education, marriage, the birth of children, anniversaries, birthday parties and so many other wonderful occasions which make life enjoyable and worthwhile. 

Instead, they remain stalwart to a futile purpose that can only ensure their unhappiness, loneliness, emptiness and indifference to their own demise since life, to them, has no value or blessing, other than to end it as early as possible. This is the demonic spirit that must enter the soul of a terrorist in order to delude itself into believing that for this reason they were created. 

And this describes the pitiful existence which Sinwar and all of his cohorts have been living. As we got a glimpse into these tunnels, extending a distance of 500 kilometers, we can see an elaborate system of compounds that took 15 years of painstaking work to build, exceeding the cost of a billion dollars. The corridors are long vacuous passageways that resemble burial tombs or prehistoric caves, not intended for man to inhabit. Consequently, anyone who has burrowed themselves like a mole, rat or groundhog has lost all proportion of what it means to be a sane human being and is completely devoid of a sound mind or balanced judgment. 

One can make the argument that the decision to live this way would fall under the category of being seriously mentally ill in a way that clouds reason and clear thinking from being a guide and a voice of reason as we navigate our daily lives. But, unlike those who suffer from mental deficits, terrorists make a decisive choice to walk away from the light and go for the path of darkness which usually leads them to an abyss from where there is no return because their minds are overtaken by the delusion, to the point where they are taken captive by their own madness. 

Ironically, their defenders would probably make the case that, as freedom fighters, they are willing to defer personal gratification for the larger reward of gaining the justice and equality that has evaded them. Yet, the lifestyle, for which they have opted, until such time as they can realize their dream, attests to a complete and total waiver of ever accomplishing good, or extending hope, blessing and meaningful purpose to themselves as well as others. 

Sadly, to the extent that they remain committed to this diabolical goal, their lives will be destroyed far greater than what they will be able to accomplish since we know that God is on the side of light, protecting all those who choose His direction. 

So, when you think about it, the world is actually focused on championing the wrong objectives, because the truth is that Hamas is not, at all, fighting for rights, land or even equality. It must be recognized that they are totally dedicated to the murder of all Jews, regardless of how many deaths of their own people, including themselves, it will take to accomplish that aim.

It is clear to understand this when you understand the enemy of God – Satan, himself. He hates God’s creation and will stop at nothing to extinguish mankind in his attempt to thwart the plan of the Almighty. With promises of grandeur, he deceives his victims into believing that they can know and have everything. It’s as old as the deception which took place in the Garden of Eden. But the only thing that happened was the guarantee of death by following his advice.

And this is nothing more than a new day with a new lie. Hamas terrorists have bought into the idea that they can steal what was intended for the Chosen People, and in order to pull that off, they are willing to live in the depths of hell for as long as it takes. Not until they abandon the darkness and delusion, will they ever be able to recognize that they actually hate themselves, first and foremost, because they cannot see their own value or worth, aside from the killing machines that they have chosen to become.

This is the real pity. Once you give yourself over to a spirit of delusion, you cease to be a useful and productive person to yourself as well as your own people. It stands to reason that no freedom or liberty can ever be obtained for others by those who have lost interest in a good life for themselves.

And so, to all the pro-Palestinian advocates, who claim to be fighting for their good, it is futile to support and champion a blessed life for those who don’t even love themselves enough to breathe the pure air, feel the warmth of the sun and treasure the wonders of creation, all of which lie above the earth – the place which we were meant to enjoy and inhabit. 

A former Jerusalem elementary and middle-school principal and the granddaughter of European Jews who arrived in the US before the Holocaust. Making Aliyah in 1993, she is retired and now lives in the center of the country with her husband.

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