It would be convenient for your argument if any of this was true, but it's not.
Jake literally read a verified quote on stage from Netanyahu himself claiming that his strategy is intentionally maintaining Hamas in power to thwart a two-state agreement. I don't know what more proof you need besides a person stating the claim they're accused of themselves.
What's become clear to me is that most people are severely bad judges of character. When it suits them, they blind themselves to all the motivated reasoning, character flaws, and biases on their own side. It's critically important to know that the person arguing to support a war has always argued to support wars—including wars that caused vast harm and are resoundingly considered a failure. It's critically important to know that someone who claims to be unbiased and intentionally claims to have the support of the "Jewish people"—falsely and dangerously conflating an ideology with an entire ethnic group—has had much of his perspective on the conflict shaped by a highly biased lobbying group.
The fact that you think these are irrelevant personal attacks when they are directly relevant to the topic the speakers are claiming expertise on really underscores the lack of critical thinking you're applying to this issue.
Hi Antonio. I've corresponded with the two journalists who are the earliest on record reporting on the 2019 Likud meeting where Netanyahu said that. One, Lahav Harkov, was unfamiliar with the direct quote, but didn't deny its possibility and confirmed Netanyahu said something along those lines. The other, Alex Selsky, is a former Netanyahu aid and confirmed for me that what I read on stage is an accurate direct quote.
I am sure Netanyahu didn't want Oct 7th to happen. I'm aware of the controversy in Likud over the policy reflected in that quote. Nonetheless, the quote (along with substantial additional corroborating evidence) proves it was Netanyahu's and others' intent to embolden Hamas in order to prevent the development of a Palestinian state; this policy was bad and Oct 7 is evidence of it.
I'm glad you're trying to do real reporting on this Likud meeting quote - it's rather remarkable that Eli wasn't familiar with it. Have you done a similar dig into the stories about Israel pushing Qatar to continue funding Hamas for essentially the same reason? I suppose you could argue that funding Gaza is different than funding Hamas, but that's rather contradictory to the idea that Hamas controls everything in Gaza.
It would be convenient for your argument if any of this was true, but it's not.
Jake literally read a verified quote on stage from Netanyahu himself claiming that his strategy is intentionally maintaining Hamas in power to thwart a two-state agreement. I don't know what more proof you need besides a person stating the claim they're accused of themselves.
What's become clear to me is that most people are severely bad judges of character. When it suits them, they blind themselves to all the motivated reasoning, character flaws, and biases on their own side. It's critically important to know that the person arguing to support a war has always argued to support wars—including wars that caused vast harm and are resoundingly considered a failure. It's critically important to know that someone who claims to be unbiased and intentionally claims to have the support of the "Jewish people"—falsely and dangerously conflating an ideology with an entire ethnic group—has had much of his perspective on the conflict shaped by a highly biased lobbying group.
The fact that you think these are irrelevant personal attacks when they are directly relevant to the topic the speakers are claiming expertise on really underscores the lack of critical thinking you're applying to this issue.
Hi Antonio. I've corresponded with the two journalists who are the earliest on record reporting on the 2019 Likud meeting where Netanyahu said that. One, Lahav Harkov, was unfamiliar with the direct quote, but didn't deny its possibility and confirmed Netanyahu said something along those lines. The other, Alex Selsky, is a former Netanyahu aid and confirmed for me that what I read on stage is an accurate direct quote.
I am sure Netanyahu didn't want Oct 7th to happen. I'm aware of the controversy in Likud over the policy reflected in that quote. Nonetheless, the quote (along with substantial additional corroborating evidence) proves it was Netanyahu's and others' intent to embolden Hamas in order to prevent the development of a Palestinian state; this policy was bad and Oct 7 is evidence of it.
I'm glad you're trying to do real reporting on this Likud meeting quote - it's rather remarkable that Eli wasn't familiar with it. Have you done a similar dig into the stories about Israel pushing Qatar to continue funding Hamas for essentially the same reason? I suppose you could argue that funding Gaza is different than funding Hamas, but that's rather contradictory to the idea that Hamas controls everything in Gaza.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/world/middleeast/israel-qatar-money-prop-up-hamas.html
https://www.timesofisrael.com/documents-show-israel-sought-valued-qatari-aid-for-gaza-in-years-leading-to-oct-7/
Thank you! I agree, I would have never expected someone at his level of involvement with this subject wouldn't know about that quote.