“[Hamas] really wanted to commit the worst atrocities that they could in order to provoke the most aggressive response possible from Israel, and then leverage that aggressive response to rally Muslims worldwide for the cause of Gaza and Palestine,” Musk said. “Which they have succeeded in doing.”
“So the counterintuitive thing here, the thing that I think should be done, even though it’s very difficult, is that I would recommend that Israel engage in the most conspicuous acts of kindness possible ever,” he continued. “That is the actual thing that would thwart the goal of Hamas.”
The war in Gaza began early last month after Hamas militants killed over a thousand Israeli civilians in a surprise attack. Israeli military counterstrikes have since have killed over 11,000 Palestinians, including over 4,000 children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
Musk made clear that he was still in support of killing or jailing Hamas members when necessary, but that humanitarian initiatives in Gaza, for example, could squash Hamas’ support.
The idea appeared similar to the U.S. “hearts and minds” campaign in Afghanistan, which hoped to bolster opposition to the Taliban through civilian investment and support.
“There’s some talk of establishing, for example, a mobile hospital,” Musk said. “I recommend doing that. Just making sure that, you know, there’s food, water, medical necessities.”
The later noted that the Israeli bombardment effort and ground invasion of Gaza is likely to backfire on the country and create even more resistance to Israel, instead of stomping it out.
“For every Hamas member you kill, how many do you create?” he said. “If you kill somebody’s child in Gaza, you’ve made at least a few Hamas members.”
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