EDITORIAL: The left’s hypocrisy on the plight of Gazan civilians

Progressive concern over the plight of civilians in Gaza is directly proportional to how useful it is in attacking Israel.

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Hamas is facing a cash crunch. This has major implications for the terror group’s continued war on Israel. Reduced payments to fighters have made it harder for Hamas to recruit. As it turns out, even bloodthirsty killers want to be paid.

Before the war, Hamas built up savings of $500 million, the Journal reported. Remember that the next time some misguided critic blames Israel for the poor conditions in Gaza prior to the Oct. 7 massacre. The fanatics in charge of Gaza didn’t spend that money on infrastructure upgrades to help the people they’re supposed to govern — and terror tunnels don’t count.

But after the war began, Israel properly took steps to restrict Hamas’ ability to bring that cash into Gaza. This forced Hamas to find new ways to come up with money.

“Hamas used the flow of humanitarian and commercial goods to build new income streams, according to Arab, Israeli and Western officials,” the Journal reported. “This has included charging taxes on merchants, collecting customs on trucks at checkpoints and commandeering goods for resale. Hamas also has used overseas cash to buy humanitarian goods that are then sold in Gaza and turned back into cash, the officials said.”

In other words, Hamas stole humanitarian aid to fund its war efforts. This should surprise no one.

The report is useful for countering the leftist stooges who have attacked the Jewish state for limiting aid to Gaza, creating a “humanitarian crisis.”

“In this moment, 1.1 million innocents in Gaza are at famine’s door. A famine that is being intentionally precipitated through the blocking of food and global humanitarian assistance by leaders in the Israeli government,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said in a March 2024 speech.

This is utter rot.

Previous reports have also documented that Hamas routinely steals or hoards aid intended for humanitarian purposes in the region. A pending 2024 lawsuit alleges that the terror group skimmed $1 billion in U.N. aid alone, The New York times reported.

In fact, Hamas has absolutely no interest in the well-being of Gaza civilians and is instead fanatically determined to wipe Israel off the map regardless of how many of its own people it kills in the process. This is evident in its decisions to hide military installations in civilian areas, including schools and medical facilities. The diversion and theft of humanitarian goods is entirely consistent with the terror group’s modus operandi.

Meanwhile, Hamas still holds dozens of civilian hostages that it seized as bargaining chips in clear violation of international law.

Hamas intentionally started this war with its barbaric Oct. 7 attack. There is an easy way for the terror group to put an end to any suffering. Release the hostages and renounce its devotion to death and destruction.