A Columbia University professor on Sunday described the Hamas-Israel war as an “indigenous Palestinian resistance” against a “colonial army.”
Joseph Massad, a professor of modern Arab politics and intellectual history at Columbia University, wrote an article highlighting the efforts of Hamas fighters invading Israel on October 7.
The effort, Massad writes, consisted of more than two dozen battle sites, which entailed Hamas conquering “50 Israeli military targets” for its Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
Hamas’ storming of Israeli checkpoints separating Gaza from Israel was “astounding,” Massad described in a section of the article titled “Jubilation and awe.”
Massad added that Hamas’ campaign was also astounding to the Israelis as well as the Palestinian and Arab peoples who emerged across the region to show support for their Palestinian counterparts in their battle against their “cruel colonizers.”
Massad said that the operation was a retaliation for “ongoing Israeli pogroms in the West Bank town of Huwwara and Jerusalem.” A pogrom is a Russian word describing an organized massacre of a particular ethnic, religious, racial, or national minority group that is either approved or condoned by state authorities.
Furthermore, he noted specifically Israel settlers stormed the al-Aqsa mosque during the Jewish High Holy Days over the last month.
“The sight of the Palestinian resistance fighters storming Israeli checkpoints separating Gaza from Israel was astounding, not only to the Israelis but especially to the Palestinian and Arab peoples who came out across the region to march in support of the Palestinians in their battle against their cruel colonizers,” Massad wrote.
Toward the end of the article, Massad wrote, “But as the ongoing war between the Israeli colonial army and the indigenous Palestinian resistance has only just begun, the days to come will surely be crucial in determining if this is the start of the Palestinian War of Liberation or yet another battle in the interminable struggle between the colonizer and the colonized.”
Massad or his department’s chair did not immediately respond for comment.
According to Columbia University’s website, Massad writes about modern Arab politics and intellectual history with a particular interest in theories of identity and culture that include theories of nationalism, sexuality, race, and religion.
He received his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1998.
Meanwhile, since the surprise attack on Israel by Hamas terrorists Saturday, hundreds of civilians, including children, the elderly, and soldiers have been killed, wounded, or captured. Israel retaliated against Hamas by firing missiles into Gaza.
A terror attack by Hamas at a music festival in Israel claimed the lives of at least 260 concert-goers with many others kidnapped and injured. Those abducted — including American citizens — are still being held hostage in Gaza.
Over 1,000 Israelis have been killed, including least 22 Americans.
