[Note from DB: On our lawprof trip to Israel, we were offered the opportunity to watch a compilation of Hamas atrocities on October 7th. I declined. I saw just a bit of this footage back in October, and it was sufficiently searing that I did not want to revisit the experience, and I certainly needed no persuading that Hamas is a theocratic death cult that should be erased from the earth. But my colleague Adam Mossoff did watch the footage, and here is his report.]
On Day 3 (July 11) of the legislation professor mission to Israel, we had the chance to observe the 45-minute movie of the Hamas atrocities on October 7 that was created primarily from the GoPro cameras worn by the Hamas troopers, but additionally consists of footage from safety cameras and CCTV. Through the assaults, the Hamas troopers uploaded their GoPro movies to the web and blasted them out on social media to a whole bunch of 1000’s of Israelis’ social media accounts on October 7. The IDF spokesperson unit spent two days taking 1000’s upon 1000’s of those movies down from the web.
I cannot describe or element any of the movie’s horrors, and so you possibly can learn this publish figuring out that you’ll not be ambushed with a nightmare that may hang-out you for the remainder of your days. I’ll say the movie is horrific. In reality, it is past horrific. But when one is to bear witness to evil in order that one can higher defend the great (Israel) and converse out towards evil (genocidal antisemitism and supporters of this nihilism within the West), one should know the evil of which one speaks. Thus, I thought of it vital for me to see the movie, however given the stunning and sickening content material of this movie, I do not begrudge anybody not watching it.
Here is some background context and common details about the movie: The IDF created this movie in November 2023 given worldwide denials of the atrocities dedicated by Hamas on October 7. Much like the Holocaust denials that started in 1945 and proceed to today, the denial of the vile atrocities dedicated by Hamas on October 7 started on October 8 and proceed to today. It is not simply denial of murders of kids and infants and different warfare crimes as “Israeli propaganda.” There’s additionally the denial of the rape and sexual violence dedicated by Hamas troopers on October 7, which has prompted Sheryl Sandberg to create her first documentary as her personal act of bearing witness to October 7. It is referred to as, “Screams Earlier than Silence,” and when you have not but seen it, I like to recommend doing so (https://www.screamsbeforesilence.com/).
Given its content material, the movie is intently managed by the IDF. I already knew this from a chance I had final November to see it, which I declined on the time. One can solely see the movie via an software, a particular invitation, or to be invited to a displaying for particular audiences, reminiscent of political leaders or media trade representatives who’ve been invited to observe it. We noticed it final week provided that we had been in Israel as a fact-finding mission about October 7. Earlier than we noticed it, we needed to signal a particular settlement to not share any photographs nor particular particulars that might be traced again to particular victims. We had been additionally prohibited from having any digital gadgets within the room and we needed to retailer our telephones in particular lockers exterior the room.
We later realized that not even all the IDF spokespeople have seen it, because it has a safety clearance score of “must know.” It seems that the first purpose for this excessive restriction on the movie is the observance of the non secular guidelines in Judaism and social norms in Israel about respecting the dignity of the deceased, which I described in my final publish about October 7 and the way Hamas intentionally sought to violate these guidelines and norms via express acts of desecration and destruction of its victims on October 7. Amongst these of us on the mission who had been talking with the IDF spokespeople about this, we had been of 1 thoughts in telling them that Israel could be greatest served by releasing the movie with out restrictions, like documentaries in regards to the Holocaust like “Night time and Fog” that include Nazi movies of pits crammed with our bodies, in addition to different scenes of physique elements or demise. Israel is in an existential warfare on a number of fronts proper now, and in such emergency situations, common guidelines or norms that apply throughout regular life must be relaxed to accommodate the exigent circumstances.
As I discussed, I will not describe something I noticed within the movie, however I’d nonetheless prefer to share a couple of common observations about it. First, the pure glee expressed by the Hamas troopers. All through the movie, the Hamas troopers are continuously shouting expressions of pleasure and pleasure in what they’re doing to their victims. They aren’t torturing or murdering out of necessity, neither is this the work of troopers who’re merely defending territory from an invasion. It was very clear from the primary few moments of the movie that they took pleasure in what they did. They celebrated it – throughout and after October 7. Many people have seen the movies shared on the web of civilians in Gaza who rushed to the vehicles or SUVs to take footage and beat the useless our bodies or dwelling hostages, shouting with glee and celebration. The Hamas troopers had been equally effusive and jubilant in regards to the ghastly atrocities they intentionally dedicated on October 7 – and so they proudly broadcast this by creating and sharing their GoPro movies with the entire world.
Second, the movie of the GoPro movies makes it very clear that Hamas is a theocratic authoritarian regime in Gaza, not merely a dictatorship or a freestanding terrorist group like Hezbollah or the Houthis. The Hamas troopers expressed their glee and pleasure by continuously proclaiming “Glory to God!” (“Allah Ackbar!). One hears this extra occasions than I might rely, though I used to be frozen by the horrors of what I used to be witnessing and so I used to be not able to counting on the time. Hamas is an authoritarian Islamic theocracy that guidelines over Gaza (it was elected into energy when Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2006 after which it took). Thus, Hamas is like Iran, the Taliban (Afghanistan), the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt from 2011-2013, and ISIS in Syria and Iraq from 2014-2019. There have been non-ideological dictatorships within the Center East, reminiscent of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and Bashar Al-Assad in Syria, however that isn’t Hamas.
That is vital to know and absolutely admire: October 7 was not about any grievances over land or alleged abuses by the Israeli authorities over the Palestinians. Hamas seeks the genocidal destruction of each Jews and Israel, simply as its monetary and army Iran, which is reported to have had a direct function within the planning and approval of the October 7 atrocities. This explains greater than something the atrocities and warfare crimes of October 7. Hamas is devoted to the genocidal evil of the demise of all Jews and the destruction of all of Israel.
Third, and final, the Palestinian tradition considers canines to be disgusting filth, and that is conveyed within the movie as effectively. I had beforehand learn articles and seen a couple of movies about how the various stray canines in Gaza are considered as nuisances and pests, and that Palestinians usually kill or torture these canines. They kill or torture canines as a result of they view canines as not even befitting any respect for all times. One doesn’t must be a “canine individual” like I’m to assume that is deeply disturbing. There may be legitimate purpose for the well-known dictum that canines are “man’s greatest good friend.”
I say this as a result of the Palestinian’s horrible view of canines is on full show within the movie of the GoPro movies made by the Hamas troopers. The most typical insult one hears within the movie, it’s a chorus that’s second solely to the shouts of “Allah Ackbar,” is the one which the Hamas troopers continuously scream on the Jews they’re capturing and slaughtering: “You’re canines!”
It’s a well-known truth in human historical past that individuals who commit mass homicide explicitly dehumanize the folks they’re killing. The Nazis did this, for instance, by labeling Jews as rats, vermin, and as a subspecies separate from Aryan people. Hamas now does it by labeling Jews as canines, which can appear unusual to somebody within the West who’s unaware of the rat-like standing that canines apparently have in Palestinian tradition. (One other instance of that is discovered on this video (https://x.com/LizaRosen0000/standing/1811955884966203632…) of an interview with an outdated Palestinian girl who says, “Jews are canines.”)
For all these causes, the movie is very horrific and searing psychologically and emotionally. Hamas despatched 3000 troopers to invade Israel for the aim of homicide, torture, rape, and kidnapping of harmless folks (about 1,450 infants, youngsters, and adults). This truth is unhealthy sufficient by itself, however these troopers didn’t commit their warfare crimes dispassionately or out of a way of army obligation. They dedicated their atrocities willingly, fortunately, and with effusive expressions of glory. The movie is a window right into a human capability for evil that I knew solely within the summary from my historic examine of the Holocaust or the Killing Fields of the Khmer Rouge, however, based mostly on what I do know, the Nazi or Khmer Rouge troopers didn’t enjoy and enthusiastically have fun their murders and atrocities. The Hamas troopers did.
When the movie concluded, I used to be in psychological shock. I had been and continued to cry. My palms had been shaking, and I felt nearly bodily numb. I additionally felt a way of detachment from my physique and my environment. I nonetheless vividly keep in mind holding my proper hand out flat in entrance of me and watching it tremble and shake, as if I had simply over-exerted myself in a exercise on the fitness center, regardless of my having sat nonetheless in an air-conditioned room for the previous hour. After a break, we met with IDF attorneys after which continued the mission with lunch and extra conferences with attorneys from NGOs and others, however it took me a number of hours to get well from the shock.
This was all per week in the past, and the shock has lengthy since worn off, however that movie will likely be with me for the remainder of my life. I hope that I can now use my writing and talking expertise as a professor and advocate to assist in my very own manner by talking reality to the vicious lies and propaganda of the pro-Hamas activists within the U.S. and the West. Let nobody be mistaken what the slogans “from the river to the ocean” and “intifada” actually imply, and what the flags of Hamas and Hezbollah that are actually usually flown on the protests within the U.S. and Europe imply. These all symbolize a pure and unadulterated nihilism that many people within the West have a tough time absolutely understanding. This isn’t simply antisemitism, and won’t finish with Jews or Israel. I hope the U.S. wakes as much as this truth earlier than its persevering with appeasement of Iran ends in Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon, as a result of after watching the movie of the October 7 atrocities, I feel I do know what’s going to occur when it does.
