Myth: Israel’s goals in Gaza are no longer defensible.
Fact: Israel is fighting a just and moral war in Gaza to free the remaining hostages, drive Hamas from power, and make certain that it can no longer threaten Israel. Israel must ensure that Hamas can never fulfill its promise to repeat October 7 “again and again.” This wasn’t a war of Israel’s choosing, but a war Hamas began with the barbaric massacre on October 7.
Myth: There’s a famine in Gaza.
Fact: While the situation in Gaza is undoubtedly difficult, the claims of famine are not accurate. Hamas started this terrible war on October 7, and the people of Gaza have suffered immensely as a result, but Israel has taken great steps to support the delivery of aid to a population ruled by its enemy. Since mid-May, Israel has facilitated the entry of more than 10,000 humanitarian aid trucks, delivering approximately 2 million tons of aid to Gaza. This includes food, medical supplies, and essential goods. Israel is surging aid into Gaza and is actively building new distribution centers to improve access. Claims of famine by the U.N.-affiliated Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) ignored the surge in aid, relied on Hamas’ inaccurate data, and weakened its definition of famine to ensure it applied to Gaza.
Myth: Israel is responsible for the civilian casualties in Gaza.
Fact: Israel has a moral army, and any accusation that Israel has a policy of deliberately targeting civilians is false. Israel is fighting the most complex urban war in history against an enemy that despicably uses civilians as human shields. Despite the challenges, Israel has taken unprecedented steps to safeguard civilian lives, warn and evacuate civilians ahead of military operations, and surge humanitarian aid to Gaza even as Hamas continues to hold hostages and launch attacks on Israel. Civilian casualties in Gaza are a direct result of Hamas’ depraved strategy of hiding its military assets throughout the civilian population, including in schools, hospitals, and mosques.
Myth: Israel has not done enough to minimize Palestinian civilian casualties.
Fact: Israel has taken unprecedented measures to protect civilians, far beyond the laws of armed conflict or the measures taken by any other army. The IDF warns Palestinian civilians to evacuate prospective targets through text messages, phone calls and by dropping leaflets, even though it inevitably means also warning the terrorists. During this war, Israel has urged Palestinian civilians to temporarily move out of areas where it plans to operate to minimize casualties and has provided them with ample time to do so. There is abundant evidence of Hamas routinely preventing civilians from leaving danger zones with roadblocks and armed terrorists.
Myth: The civilian casualty numbers from Gaza are reliable.
Fact: Casualty figures from Gaza should be treated with skepticism. The “Gaza Health Ministry” is controlled by Hamas, and therefore information it releases cannot be trusted. The Ministry does not differentiate between civilians and terrorists, and it uses numbers that are unverified. Israel has achieved a higher combatant-to-civilian casualty ratio than other Western militaries, including the United States, that have fought in urban battlefields.
Myth: Israel should not be conducting military operations in civilian areas.
Fact: Tragically, over the past 15 years, Hamas has turned Gaza into a militarized fortress — terror tunnels beneath buildings and schools, fighters hiding among civilians, buildings used as both apartments and for terrorist headquarters — systematically using civilians as human shields. According to international laws of armed conflict, Hamas has turned civilian areas into legitimate military targets, compelling Israel to operate in these areas to destroy Hamas. Israel does not intentionally or systematically target civilians, unlike Hamas.
Myth: Israel is committing a “genocide” in Gaza.
Fact: “Genocide” was first coined in the wake of the Holocaust and refers to a systematic attempt to eliminate an entire people. It is now being perversely weaponized to attack Israel in the aftermath of the deadliest assault on Jews since the Holocaust. Israel has repeatedly made clear that its war is against Hamas and not the people of Gaza, and it has taken unprecedented steps to avoid civilian casualties throughout the war and help evacuate civilians ahead of military operations. This malicious slander is an outrageous attack on the Jewish state and undermines the painful history of actual genocides that have taken place throughout history.
Myth: Israel’s actions in Gaza are illegal.
Fact: Israel, like every nation, has the absolute right to self-defense. Israel is acting according to international law after the unprovoked attack by Hamas. Israel is defending itself and undertaking military action to achieve specific, legitimate military aims. Israel exclusively targets Hamas and other terrorist groups while taking unparalleled steps to avoid civilian casualties. In any military conflict, mistakes will occur, and weapons will miss their intended targets. Israel investigates these incidents and accepts responsibility when mistakes occur. The existence of civilian casualties is a reality of war, not proof of illegal actions. The terrorist organization violates international law by deliberately using its civilians as human shields.
Myth: Israel is indiscriminately bombing in Gaza.
Fact: Israel is not indiscriminately bombing; it is precisely targeting terrorists and their weapons, which Hamas deliberately embeds within civilian areas, making them legitimate military targets. Israel targets Hamas terrorists with precision and goes above and beyond to avoid civilian casualties. This is consistent with international law and the laws of armed conflict.
Myth: Demanding Israel end the war before Hamas releases the hostages and surrenders power helps promote peace.
Fact: At the beginning of this conflict, Israel set as its goals to gain the release of its hostages and to end Hamas’ rule in Gaza. Israel must achieve those goals for an end to the conflict that can promise real peace. As President Biden’s State Department said on Oct. 23, 2023, “Any ceasefire would give Hamas the ability to rest, to refit, and to get ready to continue launching terrorist attacks against Israel. You can understand perfectly clearly why that’s an intolerable situation for Israel.” Senior Hamas officials have repeatedly made clear that they would carry out additional Oct. 7 attacks if given the chance.
Myth: Unilaterally recognizing a Palestinian state will help promote peace.
Fact: Recognizing a Palestinian state in the wake of October 7 would reward Hamas’ brutal massacre and incentivize terror in the future, without actually benefiting Palestinian civilians on the ground. Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamed recently said in an interview with Al Jazeera: “The initiative by several countries to recognize a Palestinian state is one of the fruits of October 7. We proved that victory over Israel is not impossible, and our weapons are a symbol of Palestinian dignity.” As Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid rightly said, calls to recognize a Palestinian state are “a moral error and diplomatically damaging,” adding that “The Palestinians should not be rewarded for October 7 and for supporting Hamas.” The Israeli Hostage Family Forum added, “Recognizing a Palestinian state while 50 hostages remain trapped in Hamas tunnels amounts to rewarding terrorism. Such recognition is not a step toward peace, but rather a clear violation of international law and a dangerous moral and political failure that legitimizes horrific war crimes. The abduction of men, women, and children, who are being held against their will in tunnels while subjected to starvation and physical and psychological abuse, cannot and should not serve as the foundation for establishing a state.”
