Opinion: Hamas Does Not Speak for Me or My People

Ezzeldeen Masri is the United States outreach director of the OneVoice Movement, a grassroots organization dedicated to amplifying the voices of moderate Israelis and Palestinians working toward peaceful resolution to the conflict. He founded OneVoice on Campus in 2015 to address student body polarization related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. Find more opinion on CNN.

Universities should be places for young people to advocate for causes they believe in and demonstrate peacefully. However, they should not condone or foster the kind of extremism that condemns Palestinians to a living hell, as some extremist ministers in the Israeli government openly promote.

Ezzeldeen Masri

Thank you to all those protesting in support of the Palestinian people. However, defending Hamas does not help my people and only hurts us more.

The Gaza Strip, home to 2.3 million Palestinians, is nestled with half of its residents being refugees from the Arab-Israeli war in 1948. For 75 years, these refugees have been reliant on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for essential needs such as food, education, and healthcare.

My recent visit to Safed, now part of Israel, allowed me to see where my mother's childhood home once stood. As the child of a Gazan father and a mother who was displaced from Safed in the upper Galilee, I am a blend of both lineages. Recalling my mother's sacrifices as she moved from one refugee camp to another, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with sadness.

My people's history has been marred by suffering, but it wasn't until October 7 that I fully realized the extent of the horrors we would face. After more than two months of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, over 20,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks, with more than 50,000 injured, as reported by the Hamas-run health ministry. Thousands of homes have also been destroyed. On October 7, Hamas launched an attack on Israel that resulted in the deaths of at least 1,200 people, and the group also took around 240 hostages. This event brought the Israeli army back into the Gaza Strip and marked a new catastrophe in the history of my people.

Israel forces fired a lighting flare in the northwest of Gaza, as Israeli airstrikes persisted for the 25th day, as seen from Sderot city, Israel on October 31, 2023. (Photo by Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)

As a journalist who covered Hamas in Gaza for more than ten years, I am now reflecting on the impact of the conflict, which has had global repercussions. This includes its effects on college campuses in the US, where I have dedicated a significant portion of my life to fostering unity. Beginning in 2015 with the establishment of OneVoice on Campus, I have been striving to mitigate polarization among students regarding the conflict. These endeavors are rooted in my longstanding commitment to conflict resolution and peace building, which began in 1990 when I arrived in the US to complete my political science degree with a focus on these areas.

In 2006, I established OneVoice Gaza in Gaza City with the aim of rallying Palestinians to support a negotiated two-state solution with Israel and our neighboring countries.

Being a proud Palestinian from Gaza, I have dedicated my adult life to ending the ongoing cycle of war and suffering for my people. Through this, I have come to understand that escalating hateful absolutism from either side is not the solution, no matter how much pain your people are going through. While promoting radical positions may seem like it's advancing social justice, it only fuels the extremism that prevents peace.

The Knesset needs to shift from managing conflicts to engaging in continuous negotiations with the Palestine Liberation Organization to end military occupation and establish a two-state reality. Additionally, those supporting Hamas terrorism on the Palestinian side must cease their actions. In the 2005 and 2006 Gaza legislative council elections, I, along with over 50% of eligible Palestinian voters, supported Fatah, which was in control of the Palestinian Authority at the time. I did not vote for Hamas because of their rejection of peace, coexistence, and a two-state solution, and their adoption of armed resistance against Israel. It was unfortunate that Fatah candidates split the vote, allowing Hamas, with only 44.45% of the popular vote and a majority win in one out of 16 districts, to come to power.

Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip is seen with smoke billowing after an Israeli air strike on October 16, 2023. The death toll from Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip has risen to around 2,750 since Hamas's deadly attack on southern Israel last week, the Gaza health ministry said October 16. Some 9,700 people have also been injured as Israel continued its withering air campaign on targets in the Palestinian coastal enclave, the Hamas-controlled ministry added. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP) (Photo by SAID KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Said Khatib/AFP/Getty Images

Opinion: Many Palestinians in Gaza hate Hamas. My father certainly did

Hamas should not have been allowed to participate in the 2005 elections due to its refusal to recognize the Oslo Accords of 1993. However, two factors led to their participation. Firstly, then-President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas believed that Hamas would change and that his party, Fatah, would emerge victorious. Secondly, the US President George W. Bush's administration misinterpreted the situation and supported the inclusion of all Palestinian factions in the election, failing to prevent Hamas from running despite recognizing them as a terrorist organization since 1993.

Since Hamas's bloody coup against the Palestinian Authority in 2007, Gazans have endured collective punishment policies from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and Egypt, which has intermittently closed its borders to Gaza, only allowing limited movement of people and goods on occasion.

Israel has enforced strict restrictions on food and movement in Gaza. The recent massacre by Hamas on October 7 has escalated the violence and conflict in the region. It is important to note that Hamas does not represent me or my people.

By using violence, including against civilians, to achieve its objectives, Hamas fits the definition of a terrorist organization. The vast majority of Palestinians do not support violence and acts of terrorism. Those who unfairly associate us with a terrorist group only perpetuate misconceptions and stereotypes about our people, fueling anti-Muslim prejudice.

Get Our Free Weekly Newsletter

Sign up for CNN Opinions newsletter

Connect with us on Twitter and Facebook

Demonizing our community has exposed us to danger. The Council on American-Islamic Relations has experienced a 182% surge in requests for assistance and reports of discriminatory incidents against Muslims in the US from October 7 to October 22 compared to an average 16-day period in 2022. Additionally, the US Justice Department is currently probing whether the recent shooting of three Palestinian college students in Burlington, Vermont, constitutes a hate crime.

Have you ever felt the centuries of pain my people have endured, or is it simply an exciting spectacle for you? This is our reality, not just a social media trend. Can you help us achieve peace, or are you only interested in promoting conflict?

For those advocating for rigid solutions that ignore the potential for agreement between Israelis and Palestinians, you are hindering the possibility of an independent Palestinian state living alongside Israel through negotiation and diplomacy. If you truly want to end the cycle of war and suffering, then work towards eradicating radicalism from our world altogether.