*Hi Justin,*
*FYI: Here is a piece ( see below) I found online that raises some
provocative questions that might assist in opening up the discussion you
are looking for. I personally believe history will judge Hamas as
quintessential freedom fighters -much like Nat Turner is viewed. *
*Nat Turner - Wikipedia https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fshare.google%2f30FlrupfbpkbzMLdG&c=E,1,MZEaMrCXGhyILpo3DO0qJBYs2FKc2s2RqAOnMSpWCHnzB8JbvSP5Jm2X49hRG0bBGEv2E4ld3kH8sbXHtQjtp3WmsfavlSco-Wah37_fEL1iov9PSEvveRy6BaU,&typo=1
**I believe history will
ultimately judge Israel as a terrorist state, an apartheid state, a
genocidal rogue state that must be eliminated. *
* Avram “Eliminate Israel Now” Finkelstein. P.S. A one-state
solution is the only just remedy. *
Are Hezbollah and Hamas Terrorists or Freedom Fighters? Let’s Talk Nuance
In many Western discussions, groups like Hezbollah and Hamas are quickly
labeled as "terrorists," with little room for nuance or consideration of
context. But is it really that simple?
These groups operate in asymmetrical conflicts against vastly more powerful
states, often framing themselves as resistance movements fighting for
liberation. Hezbollah, for example, emerged as a response to Israel’s
invasion of Lebanon, and many in the region see them as defenders of their
land. Hamas claims to resist Israeli occupation in Gaza and the West Bank,
a fight many Palestinians feel is necessary for their survival and dignity.
Yes, their tactics—like targeting civilians—are condemned under
international law, and those actions cannot be ignored. But at the same
time, we need to ask why these groups exist in the first place. What
conditions of occupation, systemic oppression, and power imbalance give
rise to them? Can we dismiss the context of ongoing displacement,
blockades, and military aggression that fuels their support among oppressed
populations?
International law acknowledges the right to resist occupation, yet
non-state actors in asymmetrical wars are held to standards that even
powerful states routinely violate. When the global community calls one side
terrorists but excuses or justifies state violence that kills far more
civilians, it raises uncomfortable questions about double standards.
So, are they terrorists, freedom fighters, or something in between? What
does it mean to fight for liberation in an asymmetrical conflict, and how
should the world frame these struggles?
On Mon, Aug 4, 2025 at 9:41 AM Roberta Ahlquist
wrote:
> Hear Rashad Khalidi today on Democracy Now. Amy Goodman
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Aug 4, 2025, at 9:14 AM, Justin Zalkin wrote:
>
> Hello —
>
> I see some exceptionally bright people on this thread who have differing
> perspectives. For the folks who think Israel should immediately declare a
> ceasefire, what are your perspectives on Hamas? And what do you anticipate
> Hamas would most likely do with a ceasefire period?
>
> Hopefully everyone views famine among Gazans as horrible (regardless of
> who is to blame). My fear is that a cessation of hostilities that leaves
> Hamas governing would not lead to a good long term outcome for Gazans (or
> Israelis). I am curious what others who have studied the conflict in more
> detail think would most likely happen if Hamas were to continue governing.
>
>
> All the Best,
> Justin
>
>
>
>
>
> On Aug 1, 2025, at 10:56 AM, Aram James wrote:
>
> Subject: Your Stand on the Ceasefire
>
> Hi Henry,
>
> You were truly the only candidate for the Palo Alto City Council in 2024,
> out of nine total candidates, who had the courage to unequivocally call for
> a ceasefire. I attended the council meeting that night and remember your
> speech very well.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Avram “ One State Solution” Finkelstein
>
> On Fri, Aug 1, 2025 at 10:31 AM, Henry Etzkowitz
> wrote:
>
>> Marty
>>
>> Marty,
>>
>> Express away but the killing and starvation policy must stop, under UN
>> armed supervision, of course. Who is to be the Ike who said, I will go to
>> Korea during he 1952 election campaign, achieved a cease fire, that holds
>> to this day, despite lack of a formal peace treaty.
>>
>> Best,
>> Henry
>>
>> > On Aug 1, 2025, at 10:19 AM, Martin Wasserman
>> wrote:
>> >
>> > Henry,
>> >
>> > One of my objections to “ceasefire now” is that it places all of the
>> onus on Israel and demands nothing of Hamas, and gives Hamas breathing
>> space to regroup and rearm so they can continue their policy of killing
>> Jews.
>> >
>> > Marty
>> >
>> >
>> >> On Aug 1, 2025, at 10:01 AM, Henry Etzkowitz
>> wrote:
>> >>
>> >> Dear Marty
>> >>
>> >> I have expressed my agreement in heron to Council on their general
>> policy of excluding foreign policy issues However, like the attorney for
>> the holocaust victim who successfully asked the US Supreme for a narrow
>> exception to the statute of limitations, I argued to Council that there are
>> certain issues that it behooves as as Palo Alto citizens to take a stand:
>> Gaza cease fire now, is one! See council video of several months ago for my
>> full statement.
>> >>
>> >> Best,
>> >> Hillel
>> >>> On Aug 1, 2025, at 9:43 AM, Martin Wasserman
>> wrote:
>> >>>
>> >>> Theres no legitimate reason for city government to weigh in on
>> foreign policy issues, especially in highly volatile areas like the Middle
>> East. Such controversial resolutions change nothing in the Middle East and
>> only promote conflict at home. Unless of course the goal is precisely to
>> create conflict at home.
>> >>>
>> >>> Martin Wasserman
>> >>>
>> >>>
>> >>>> On Aug 1, 2025, at 2:14 AM, Henry Etzkowitz
>> wrote:
>> >>>>
>> >>>> Ps
>> >>>> Upon reflection, accept your critique: cease fire requires
>> repetition , will include in writings this topic until achieved
>> >>>> https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fwww.triplehelix.net&c=E,1,rX2juLor1FZsIm1FBnRXiYZjCoQKUuVLjAEJmQtNhzUJUep9ZkqXmF9pMepwPsS0xZASQ-DA0x8ZZI_AgQfnAL2x3NOwcmFPs1CrUvo75hXdobSYc0hFY9r0W80,&typo=1
>> >>>>
>> >>>>> On Jul 31, 2025, at 11:45 PM, Roberta Ahlquist <
>> finnroberta@gmail.com> wrote:
>> >>>>>
>> >>>>> Ok!🌷🦋
>> >>>>>
>> >>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>> >>>>>
>> >>>>>> On Jul 31, 2025, at 10:20 PM, Henry Etzkowitz
>> wrote:
>> >>>>>>
>> >>>>>> Agree with cease fire, and permanent treaty above and beyond.
>> Aram, who was present, can assure you that I requested each council member
>> individually and publicly to commit Palo Alto to call for cease fire.
>> Video supposed to be available at city website.
>> >>>>>>
>> >>>>>> Best
>> >>>>>> Henry
>> >>>>>>
>> >>>>>>
>> >>>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>> >>>>>>
>> >>>>>>>> On Jul 31, 2025, at 8:49 PM, Roberta Ahlquist <
>> finnroberta@gmail.com> wrote:
>> >>>>>>>
>> >>>>>>> Yes- and how about a ceasefire? Less abstract, more
>> concrete...?🐸🦋
>> >>>>>>>
>> >>>>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>> >>>>>>>
>> >>>>>>>> On Jul 31, 2025, at 1:08 PM, Henry Etzkowitz
>> wrote:
>> >>>>>>>>
>> >>>>>>>> Somewhere in Israel’s Governmental bureaucracy under an
>> innocuous title, a “collective Eichmann” is at work meticulously designing
>> the “crime of the new century” the systematic destruction the civil
>> institutional environment of universities, businesses, and housing, with
>> the intent and objective of atomizing the citizens of GAZA Palestine into a
>> controllable mass. Attendant nutrition deprivation is an overlay on
>> institutional and organizational deprivation, conducted in Mediterranean
>> sunlight and international, if not Israeli, full media gaze. Rather than
>> the inside pages of the New York Times where v Germany’s 20th century
>> holocaust was relegated, this rolling, escalating genocide is on the front
>> pages of the newspaper of record where all news that fits is published,
>> sometimes ironically overshadowed by food recipes in the Internet Edition.
>> The international community, led by Europe where the Holocaust was
>> originated, collaborated, condoned and only sometimes resisted in the last
>> century, must mitigate its indelible moral stain by heading off the
>> Netenyahu regime’s scheme. Only a Jewish state founded on the ashes of the
>> holocaust could have been given such leeway, not to forget Pol Pot’s
>> Cambodia. Who will be the future Hannah Arendt to chronicle the ubiquity
>> of evil?
>> >>>>>>>>
>> >>>>>>>> Sincerely
>> >>>>>>>> Henry Etzkowitz
>> >>>>>>>> Distinguished Fellow
>> >>>>>>>> University of London, Birkbeck College, Centre for Innovation
>> Management Research
>> >>>>>>>> Co-founder, Neighbors for Environmental and Social Justice, 644
>> Menlo Avenue, Menlo Park CA 94025
>>
>> >>>>>>>> RE Henry Etzkowitz et al vs Elon Musk et al Case number
>> 24CV450485 Superior Court of California County of California, Downtown
>> Courthouse 191 Notth First Street, San Jose CA 95113 civil division
>> >>>>>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>> >>>
>> >>
>> >
>>
>>
>