The Faces of God

Most polite news sources call them "militants", though Hamas is held to be a terrorist organization by countries such as the United States and Canada and some European countries who don't hesitate to name them what they most certainly present as by their fearsomely criminal behaviour as extremist Islamists glorying in conflict and murder. There is far less hesitation in naming the militants who have committed themselves to the Islamic State as terrorists in their jihadist zeal to sweep all before them in their campaign of terror.

Yet there is nothing that separates them; theirs is a shared ideology of viciously violent jihad. Each 'executes' those whom they view as expendable to their vision of the greater glory of Islam. Each wear black, carry black flags, hood their faces when filming videos demonstrating their pitiless slaughter of those they consider inferior, or their enemies. They both speak the language of jihad, elevating their conflict with the world and their nearer victims as a service to Allah.

"I cannot convey my hatred and contempt for those Westerners! [Worse], those Egyptians and Arabs who still put their faith in the Western conscience generally and the colonial conscience specifically. If you want to be saved from the jaws of the Western beast,  there exists only one way out ....: begin the jihad and ignore any traitor who tries to trick you into trusting the Western conscience." 
"It is the struggle between the rising East and barbaric West -- between God's laws and the laws of the jungle."
Sayyid Qutb, inspiration for modern-day Islamist jihad

In the Gaza Strip masked gunmen lined up seven men whose heads were covered by bags, alongside a wall outside a mosque, shooting them to death before hundreds of people and shouts rang out of "God is Great!". Pinned on the wall was a note that said they were guilty of giving information to the Israel Defence Forces and Israeli intelligence on the location of tunnels, where the homes of fighters and rockets were, later struck by Israel.

Palestinians watching as Hamas militants execute Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel, in Gaza City August 22, 2014. Photo by Reuters

These were unfortunate Palestinians 'suspected' of collaborating with the enemy, without due process of law, no trial, simply summary execution. A neighbour or a business acquaintance, even a relative could denounce a completely innocent person and there would be no recourse to law and protection against death meted out by Hamas terrorists.

As far as killing an innocent; it hardly matters to Hamas. What matters is the very public display, the effect it has on anyone who might consider giving information to Israel, in the graphic demonstration of what would become of them.

People watching as Hamas militants surround Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel before they executing them in Gaza City August 22, 2014. Photo by Reuters

The shooting of another eleven alleged spies was named by the Hamas media as "choking the necks of the collaborators", representing the largest number of suspected informers killed in a single day under the Hamas banner. The alleged informants were shot to death by a firing squad at Gaza City police headquarters. Two of the remaining eleven were women, according to the Palestinian Center for Human Rights.

When Jews call upon god, it is to declare their passion and their faith in Jehovah, not to declare that they do service to god by killing in his name. To Jews, Jehovah protects; whereas Allah guides rockets. Orthodox Jews pray for peace, extremist Muslims swear their fealty to murderous jihad.

"These targeted hits have driven them into a state of severe anxiety, because obviously Israel is getting some good information about who is where and when." 

"When you go and kill somebody, the accusation that he's working for Israel covers a lot of sins, and people are less likely to ask questions about it."

Mark Heller, principal research associate, Institute for National Security Studies, Tel Aviv.

After the success of the targeted assassination of three senior Hamas commanders, and the possible elimination of another, Hamas is clearly annoyed, to say the least. It has been theorized that their impromptu murder-spree of supposed informers may simply be an instance of elimination of political rivals, the settling of personal disputes, using the pretext of collaboration with Israel as a cover. In any event, it is Allah being served by his faithful.

Hamas militants prepare to execute an alleged collaborator with Israel in Gaza City, one of 18 executions carried out on Friday. Reuters