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I'm from Gaza. We Must Dismantle the Extremist Ideas Fueling the Violence
(Jewish Chronicle-UK) Moumen al-Natour - Before Oct. 7, a Hamas minister delivered daily sermons at his local mosque. He continuously preached about the beauty and blessings of war, insisting that "there is no peace with the Jews." This scenario was replicated across Gaza's more than 1,000 mosques; sermon scripts were drafted by the Hamas-run Ministry of Endowments and distributed to preachers before they took the pulpit. Dismantling the infrastructure of radicalism and countering ideological mobilization in mosques and schools is no less vital than disarmament. In fact, it is the fundamental prerequisite for ensuring that violence does not reignite the moment the rubble is cleared. For decades, the educational and religious systems were exploited to steer collective consciousness exclusively toward armed conflict. Thus, an urgent need has emerged to restore the mosque's original role as a place of worship and a hub for enlightened thought, promoting values of tolerance and coexistence. Disarming Hamas without ridding educational and religious institutions of their radical ideas will keep the door to conflict wide open. Gaza's future will be determined inside classrooms and atop pulpits, where a consciousness is forged that will either repeat past mistakes or lay the foundation for a generation committed to peace, development, and investment in the future. The writer is a Palestinian lawyer, co-founder of the We Want to Live movement in Gaza, and a former political prisoner held by Hamas.