The Big Picture
- Last Week Tonight with John Oliver delves into the Hamas-Israel war, highlighting the complexity of the issue that goes beyond picking sides.
- American newscasters’ claim that Gazans support Hamas overlooks the fact that Hamas has significantly changed its stance over the years, and Palestinians do not support terrorist attacks.
- The majority of Israelis want Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gone as his attitude throughout the conflict has claimed thousands of lives since the war broke out.
We all knew it was bound to happen, and viewers who tune in weekly to Last Week Tonight with John Oliver have been waiting for this episode. After touching on the subject briefly over the last few weeks, the show finally moved the Hamas-Israel war to the main segment, which John Oliver dove right into as soon as the episode started — because, as we all know, this is a loaded subject.
After TMZ, Justin Bieber and several morning shows made sure the world knew what their takes were on the war, the show made the case that the issue is a lot more complex than picking a side in this war and sticking with it. Oliver decided to skip the long History of animosity between Gazans and Israeli people (because apparently, he isn’t a school) and showcased how misleading the coverage of the conflict has been. Which is why it’s important to reiterate at every opportunity that neither Palestinian nor Israeli people support this war, but their voices have been systematically ignored.
To start it off, Last Week Tonight addressed the statement that American newscasters have been repeating — that Gazans support Hamas because they elected the terrorist group to office. While this is true, it ignores the important fact that Hamas took over their government position almost two decades ago, and at the time they had a significantly mild discourse, with a representative assuring the population at the time that Hamas was “moderated,” “open-minded,” and “not an extremist organization.” Since they have greatly modified their stance over the years, Palestinians don’t support terrorist attacks and are not in favor of Hamas.
Isrealis Don’t Support the Israel-Hamas War Either — Most of Them Want Prime Minister Netanyahu Gone
The same is true for Israelis: More than 70% of the Israel population wants the current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gone, because the politician’s attitude throughout the conflict has claimed the lives of both Palestinians and Israeli. Before the current war broke out, Israel had sustained around 40 weeks of protests against Netanyahu — who managed to secure his re-election in 2022 by forming a coalition with far-right politicians including Itamar Ben-Gvir, who Last Week Tonight shows was convicted of supporting terrorist organizations and inciting racism.
Last Week Tonight also reminds us that events like Israel deploying over 6,000 bombs over the Gaza strip in six days is only possible because the United States has basically been funding it: The country has received about 3.8 billion a year for military aid — a sum that makes it possible for them to propagate Palestinian genocide, which they have been doing under the guise of self-defense while committing countless war crimes in the process.
As Oliver underscores, there’s no easy solution to the Israel-Hamas war, although a cease-fire — or a “cease… humanitarian pause” and “ceasing of the levels of violence,” as Justin Trudeau babbled — seems like a first step at the very least. It’s fundamental to realize that this is exactly the type of event that breeds terrorist organizations, and the kids who are currently having panic attacks and feeling “like shit” have the potential of becoming the extremists of tomorrow.
You can watch the full main segment below:
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Khushi Patel is a science fiction author who lives in Austin, Texas. She has published three novels, and her work has been praised for its originality and imagination. Khushi is a graduate of Rice University, and she has worked as a software engineer. She is a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and her books have been nominated for several awards.
