The scope of the massacres committed by Hamas terrorists and Gazan civilians in southern Israel on October 7 deeply shocked Israeli society. In the aftermath of October 7 Israel was shocked a second time – by multiple denials of the massacre, the indifference to Israeli women who were raped and Israeli children who were kidnapped, and a generally hostile public opinion among young people in the West. Very soon the world was mostly busy with the war in Gaza, quickly and conveniently forgetting the origins of this war. Hamas terrorists who slit throats, beheaded victims and raped women were referred as “militants” or “paramilitary activists.” Claims made by Hamas officials were uncritically adopted and entered into the news cycle stream.
