The fog of war is all too real.
We’re routinely misled about who did what during wartime, either due to the complexities of military action, the dangers of war-time reporting or plain ol’ propaganda.
Some facts are solid from the jump. Others are confirmed over time through meticulous reporting and first-person accounts.
Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel offered near-instant clarity. The terrorists not only slaughtered innocents by the hundreds they captured the atrocities on video for all to see.
And share.
This podcast in which @bariweiss describes the sexual violence against Israeli women and girls by Hamas during the Oct 7 attack (and still ongoing) is difficult to listen to, but a necessary testament in the face of denial by so many in the West. https://t.co/4jOKu68PbT
— Kiwiwit (@kiwiwit) January 16, 2024
Politicians, journalists and Hollywood insiders got a sneak peek at that footage, revealing some of the ghastly details. The visuals shocked the senses, even for those with the strongest of stomachs.
Those who witnessed the videos, some captured via Hamas body cams, dashboard cams and GoPro cameras, describe a sickening string of atrocities as ghoulish as the World War II concentration camps.
Many of those who carried out the barbaric attack wore bodycams with the explicit goal of documenting their atrocities, most likely as a way to further terrorize and torment the Israeli public, ISIS-style, long after the attack….
In one particularly awful moment, a group of elderly people is gunned down and mutilated on the pavement next to their minibus. In another scene, we see a Hamas terrorist screaming “Allahu Akhbar,” as he relentlessly hacks the head off a Thai laborer with a hatchet.
The Israeli-Palestinian debate offers many shades of gray. The aforementioned videos do not.
Telll that to Bassem Youssef.
The comedian known as “Egypt’s Jon Stewart” recently addressed the accusations of rape, torture and beheadings during an interview on the “PBD Podcast.”
His takeaway? Where’s the proof?
Youssef shared the interview in question on his X account, entitled “Debunking Propaganda.” The show co-host, Adam Sosnick, quizzed the satirist about the atrocities committed by Hamas against Israelis and non-Israelis alike. He struck a defiant note.
“Where are the decapitated babies? What are their names?” Youssef asked.
“What’s your point, that Hamas didn’t kill babies?” Sosnick asked. The terrorist group slaughtered men, women, children, the elderly and the young on Oct. 7. Israelis. Americans. People from all over the globe.
Hamas is currently holding an infant, who just turned one, as a hostage.
“We’ve seen videos, countless videos of [Hamas] gang raping women,” the host continued, astounded by Youssef’s reaction. “And then blowing their head off while they chop off one of their breasts. We’ve seen these videos.”
Youssef’s social media post then flashes the word, “WHERE?”
Here’s his podcast show response.
“If terrorist group burns people, you know what terrorist group does? They terrorize. They would show them off like ISIS did when they burned people in cages… the terrorist group, by design, terrorizes. They will go in with their GoPro and they will show you the babies that they decapitated. They will not hide it like, ‘oh, my, we didn’t do this.’
“We have not seen anything of that [from Hamas]. As a matter of fact, according to Israel, Israeli survivors said that many of these casualties happened because Israeli troops came in and indiscriminately killed everybody including the hostages.”
The clip is notable for another reason. Actor John Cusack of “Say Anything” fame shared it, suggesting he agrees with the comedian based on how often the star promotes anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian messaging.
Bassem Youssef killed it! @Byoussef
pic.twitter.com/IgQMuSm9eK— Sir Chilliebean (@Chilliebeanz) January 18, 2024
It’s not the first time the satirist showed his pro-Hamas sentiments.
Piers Morgan asked Youssef about the Oct. 7 attacks just days later on his “Piers Morgan Uncensored” showcase. The comedian shrugged, calling the assault as “terrible, of course” but quickly pivoted to the plight of the Palestinians.
He then evoked Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro’s emotional comments in the wake of the attacks. He said Shapiro pined to not just wipe out Hamas but label anyone demanding a cease fire a “terrorist sympathizer.”
Youssef, tongue in cheek, agreed with Shapiro’s wishes.
He then repeated the early Hamas lie that the Israelis blew up a Gaza hospital, killing hundreds of people. The Hamas distortion was instantly debunked by most credible news outlets, but not The New York Times or Democrat Rashida Tlaib.
The comedian clung to it during the conversation.
Morgan replayed his interview with Shapiro, showing that Youssef had misconstrued what the conservative pundit had said.