Children dressed as Hamas militants and armed with mock weapons were among the Palestinians celebrating what they described as Hamas' "victory of the resistance" over Israel after seven weeks of violence and bloodshed.
While the mainstream media neglected to publish photos of Hamas fighters as they launched more than 4,480 rockets at Israel in July and August, there are nevertheless news service photos of children in Gaza and the West Bank cities decked out in full Hamas regalia, celebrating the group classified by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization.
Here are images from Nablus in the West Bank:
A child wearing military fatigues and holding a mock weapon takes part in a rally gathering supporters of the Hamas Islamist movement, three days after a deal between Israel and Hamas over the 50-day war, Aug. 29, 2014 in the West Bank city of Nablus. Thousands of militants paraded in the besieged Gaza Strip, defiantly saying they would re-arm as prospects of a final deal on a long-term Israel-Hamas truce looked shaky. (Jaafar Ashtiyeh/AFP/Getty Images)
A Palestinian boy holds a toy gun during a celebration organized by Hamas in the West Bank city of Nablus, on Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. (AP Photo/Nasser Ishtayeh)
And in the West Bank city of Hebron:
A Palestinian child wearing military fatigues and holding a mock weapon takes part in a rally gathering supporters of the Hamas Islamist movement following Friday prayers, three days after a deal between Israel and Hamas over the 50-day war, Aug. 29, 2014 in the West Bank city of Hebron. (Hazem Bader/AFP/Getty Images)
In Gaza:
A Palestinian child wearing a Hamas headband flashes the sign of victory atop a car as people gather in the streets to celebrate after a deal reached between Hamas and Israel over a long-term end to seven weeks of fighting, Aug. 26, 2014 in Rafah in the southern of Gaza Strip. (Said Khatib/AFP/Getty Images)
In Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority has its headquarters, a girl draped in a Hamas flag took a photo of other children celebrating Hamas missiles.
A Palestinian child wrapped in a Hamas flag takes a picture during a rally by supporters of the Islamist movement in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Aug. 30, 2014. (Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images)
This small child waving a toy pistol took part in a Muslim Brotherhood rally in Jordan in support of Hamas:
A boy sits on his father's shoulders as he carries a toy gun during a celebration by the Muslim Brotherhood movement to declare the victory of Gaza and Hamas against Israel in Amman, Jordan, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. Thousands of followers and supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood movement in Jordan celebrate what they call "Hamas' Victory" against Israel. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon)
Photos posted on an Israeli social networking site Rotter showed Palestinian boys brandishing toy weapons on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount – the holiest site in Judaism and third holiest site to Muslims.
In one photo a boy was armed with what appears to be homemade toy mortars and a missile, while another wore military fatigues and had his face fully covered in the style of Hamas and other terrorist groups like the Islamic State.
Image via Rotter.net/My Right Word)
The boys posed in front of the Dome of the Rock shrine, suggesting a link between Islam and the fight against Israel, a theme further emphasized in a green flag raised at the same celebration displaying crossed swords, the Dome of the Rock and a full map of Palestine that erased Israel.
Image source: Rotter.net
Despite news reports that Palestinians seek a two-state solution — one for the Jews in Israel and one for the Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem — these children have apparently received a different education at home.
A poll published last week by a Palestinian research group showed that 89 percent of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip said they supported rocket attacks against Israel. The poll, conducted by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, found that only 1.4 percent said they opposed the attacks, while 1 percent of Palestinians in Gaza said they were strongly opposed.
