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Source: https://nationalinterest.org/feature/hamas%E2%80%99-delusional-war-propaganda-209810
Hamas' Delusional War Propaganda
(National Interest) Rany Ballout - "Abu Obaida" is the military spokesman of Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades. He regularly appears on TV screens throughout the Middle East, providing updates on Hamas' war effort since Oct. 7. He announces Hamas' purported tactical achievements and consequential losses for Israel while promising an imminent victory. Abu Obaida has gained massive popularity and traction across the Arab and Muslim world. Arab social media depicts people, including children, glued to TV screens awaiting his speeches. Large banners featuring his picture appear in many Arab and Muslim states and cities. As a result, large segments of the Arab and Muslim population embraced Hamas' information war against Israel, celebrating the Oct. 7 assault as a major military breakthrough. Abu Obaida's speeches predominantly frame the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis as a historical and perennial conflict between Islam and Judaism. His strongest arguments often refer to the purportedly imminent demise of the Jewish state, with the current operation beginning the decisive era of Israeli defeats, and he extensively quotes martial verses from the Quran. Hamas depicts an effective and victorious battle against Israel, while most Arabic media and a majority of the Arab public appear to have subscribed to Hamas' war narrative against Israel. The conflict is incorrectly described as one between equal powers. Claims include Hamas having killed substantial numbers of Israeli forces, destroying hundreds of tanks and weapons, an Israeli economy suffering as a result of reservist mobilization, and a political divide tearing Israeli society apart. Israel's massive military response and the ensuing large-scale destruction has not deterred a majority of Arabs from a sentimental appeal to illusory promises of victory. Yet this is hardly surprising and replicates similar delusional portrayals by the Arabic media in previous Arab-Israeli conflicts.