Obama Discusses the Israel-Hamas Conflict, the Attack of October 7, and “What’s Happening to Palestinians”
As the Middle East violence in Gaza continues to escalate, former US President Barack Obama asked people to “take in the whole truth,” tiptoeing on the month-old battle between Israel and Hamas. Obama said on a discussion led by the podcast Pod Save America, “If there’s any chance of us being able to act constructively, to do something, it will require an admission of complexity.”
He then on, “It is also true that the occupation and what is happening to Palestinians is intolerable, and that what Hamas did was horrific and there is no justification for it.” Obama compared “the madness of antisemitism” to the Holocaust, pointing out that “people are dying right now who had nothing to do with what Hamas did.”
“ENTIRE TRUTH”
He said, “You have to take in the whole truth if you want to solve the problem.” “And then you have to acknowledge that everyone is somewhat complicit—none of us have clean hands.” With 2.3 million residents, Gaza is a 25-mile long sliver of territory under Hamas political administration since 2007. However, Israel has imposed an embargo on the region. Obama made an ineffective attempt to mediate a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.
The context of all of this is the many years that have passed without a lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. ..As I consider this, I ask myself, “What could I have done to advance this during my presidency?” with all of my effort. I can attest to that with my scars,” he continued. His statements coincide with the announcement made by the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza that 9,448 Palestinians had died in the Israel-Hamas conflict. Over 140 Palestinians have lost their lives in unrest and Israeli incursions in the West Bank.
Over 1,400 Israelis have lost their lives, the majority of them in the Hamas strike on October 7 that sparked the conflict, and the terrorist organization has taken 242 Israeli prisoners into Gaza. Since Wednesday, over 1,100 individuals have evacuated the Gaza Strip via the Rafah border as a result of an apparent agreement between Israel, Egypt, the United States, and Qatar—which mediates with Hamas.
