On the morning of October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists broke through the fence separating Gaza and Israel and killed roughly 1,200 people, while dragging 251 hostages back into Gaza. It was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. By the next day, the word “genocide” was already being widely used on social media and in the streets, though Israel’s ground operation had not yet started.
In Times Square, a rally organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) and the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) drew more than a thousand people, some of whom celebrated the attack while it was still underway.[i] The organizing coalition’s public statement three days later framed the coming Israeli response as an effort to “manufacture consent” for genocide in Gaza.[ii]
Put simply, the GenoLIE arrived before any meaningful Israeli response began.
Indeed, the IDF’s ground operation did not begin until October 27 – three weeks after genocide accusations first appeared. Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech, most often falsely cited by genocide accusers as evidence of genocidal intent because of the invocation of the biblical Amalek, was only delivered on October 28.[iii]
Just six days after the Hamas massacre, on October 13, NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani (then-New York State assembly member) posted, “We are on the brink of genocide of Palestinians in Gaza right now…” with the hashtag to an NYC-DSA campaign called “No Money for Massacres.”
On October 14, thirteen days before a single IDF soldier entered Gaza – the Qatar-based news network Al Jazeera unequivocally declared that “this is genocide.”[iv]
A day later, on October 15, merely eight days after October 7, over 800 scholars of international law and genocide studies had already signed a public statement warning that Israel was poised to commit genocide.[v] On October 28, a UN human rights official resigned in protest, calling events in Gaza “a genocide unfolding before our eyes.”[vi] All this, before any meaningful ground war between Hamas and the IDF had begun.
Genocide is a well-established legal term and standard, proven by a pattern of conduct assessed over time. An accusation lodged within 24 – 48 hours after the Hamas massacre against Israel – which truly was intended to kill as many Israeli civilians as possible – before any such pattern could exist, is a predetermined narrative, not a finding.
This tells us about the accuser’s bias and goals, not about the evidence. When a verdict precedes the trial by three weeks, the honest conclusion is that the verdict was never about the facts at all.
The “Gaza Genocide” is one of the biggest lies of the 21st century. It was generated and promoted by anti-Zionist and antisemitic networks following the October 7 Massacre to prevent Israel from saving its hostages, delegitimize the Jewish state, and fuel global antisemitism.
Read the next piece to learn more on the Gaza GenoLIE puzzle.
[i]“Chanting ‘700,’ pro-Palestinian activists in New York fete Hamas attack,” The Times of Israel, October 9, 2023. https://www.timesofisrael.com/pro-palestinians-celebrate-hamas-attack-as-israel-supporters-rally-in-new-york/
[ii]The People’s Forum, “Statement on Times Square Palestine Protest Held on October 8, 2023.” https://peoplesforum.org/blog_post/statement-on-times-square-palestine-protest-held-on-october-8-2023/
[iii]Statement by PM Netanyahu, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, October 28, 2023. https://www.gov.il/en/pages/statement-by-pm-netanyahu-28-oct-2023
[iv] Al Jazeera, “This is genocide,” October 14, 2023, https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2023/10/14/this-is-genocide
[v]“Public Statement: Scholars Warn of Potential Genocide in Gaza,” TWAILR, October 15, 2023. https://twailr.com/public-statement-scholars-warn-of-potential-genocide-in-gaza/
[vi]“UN human rights official resigns over ‘textbook case of genocide’ in Gaza,” Common Dreams, October 31, 2023, https://www.commondreams.org/news/un-human-rights-official-resigns