To truly understand a religion, one must turn to its scriptures—not its followers. Followers, whether through ignorance or intent, can often act in ways that deviate from the original teachings of the religious texts they claim to follow.
This discrepancy is not limited to religion alone; the same principle applies when trying to understand political or social movements. To truly grasp the reality of events, we must turn to the experiences of those directly affected, rather than relying on media narratives, intellectual punditry, or political machinations.
This idea is crucial when discussing the Palestinian resistance, which has been subjected to distorted portrayals by external observers who lack direct exposure to the ongoing suffering in the region.
Throughout history, religious authorities have often worked in tandem with political powers to manipulate divine principles for the benefit of the elite.
Businessmen, politicians, and religious leaders frequently co-opt religious teachings to advance their own agendas, reshaping interpretations to align with their personal interests.
The Palestinian resistance, seen through the lens of some Western media outlets and intellectuals, suffers from a similar distortion.
Instead of being understood as a fight for survival against apartheid and colonialism, it is often misrepresented as a senseless conflict or a religiously motivated outburst, driven by irrational hatred of Israel.
The truth, however, lies in the systematic displacement of Palestinians since the Nakba, and the ongoing illegal expansion of Israeli settlements—a situation made clearer when we look beyond the media narrative and hear the voices of the people living under occupation.
Media houses and political elites often present events in a way that serves their own interests. They craft narratives designed to elicit support or suppress dissent, depending on their agendas.
Just as religious authorities may distort divine principles for power, media outlets often twist facts to align with political goals.
In online discussions, people often appraise or criticise the actions of Palestinian authorities and by extension, the Palestinian people. However, these assessments are usually disconnected from the actual experiences on the ground.
The authenticity of the news, the perspective of those living through the conflict, and the interpretation of the events are filtered through layers of bias.
Many who express opinions about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict have no direct contact with those who suffer the daily indignities of occupation and apartheid. As a result, they offer solutions that are detached from the brutal reality of life under siege.
Imagine a patient rushed to the emergency room after a terrible car accident. His body is riddled with injuries—fractured bones, a broken leg, blood pooling around him. His breathing is shallow, and his consciousness flickers in and out as doctors scramble to stabilise him. Amidst the chaos, one doctor steps forward, ignoring the gravity of the situation. Instead of focusing on the patient’s shattered bones and life-threatening injuries, the doctor begins to lecture the man on maintaining a healthy diet.
This scenario, while extreme, parallels the way many people view the Palestinian resistance.
They see the symptoms of a long history of colonialism and apartheid, but instead of addressing the root cause—displacement, occupation, and ethnic cleansing—they offer solutions as disconnected as the doctor’s dietary advice in the face of life-threatening trauma.
People suggest that Palestinians pursue nonviolent resistance or education reforms, much like those that worked in other historical contexts. However, they fail to acknowledge the uniqueness and severity of the Palestinian situation, where survival is the immediate goal, not theoretical peace or long-term development.
Much like the patient in the ER needs immediate surgery rather than dietary tips, the Palestinian people need the world to understand their dire situation, not idealistic solutions that ignore the realities of occupation and systematic oppression.
One common suggestion often touted in the media is that Palestinians should adopt the nonviolent approach of Mahatma Gandhi or focus on educational reforms like Sir Syed Ahmed Khan.
While these strategies were effective in their respective contexts—colonial India and 19th-century Muslim India—they fail to address the unique situation of the Palestinians.
The situation in Palestine is not one of peaceful protests against a distant colonial power but of daily survival against a regime that seeks to systematically erase their existence.
In his last moments, Yahya Sinwar, a leader of the Palestinian resistance, fought until the end, even throwing a stick at a drone attempting to capture him. This defiant act, reminiscent of Tipu Sultan’s final stand against British forces in India, symbolises the depth of the Palestinian resolve. Like Tipu Sultan, who declared, “Better to live one day as a lion than a hundred years as a sheep,” Sinwar’s death represents a refusal to bow to colonial forces, no matter the odds. Suggesting nonviolent resistance in this context misses the essence of their struggle—a fight not just for land but for survival against forces seeking to erase their existence.
The Palestinian situation is not just a one-time event like the Nakba; it is an ongoing catastrophe marked by illegal land grabs, the expansion of Israeli settlements, and violent occupation.
The Hilltop Youth, for example, are notorious for their aggressive land-grabbing tactics, often condoned or ignored by Israeli authorities. Their actions are part of a broader strategy of colonization, designed to systematically displace Palestinians and erase their presence from the land.
This ongoing ethnic cleansing is rarely addressed by those who critique the Palestinian resistance from afar. Instead, they often accuse fighters of inciting violence without understanding the daily humiliation, violence, and destruction Palestinians endure.
What many fail to grasp is that the Palestinian fighters are not engaging in a lost cause out of some misguided sense of religious duty. Rather, they are resisting a form of apartheid and colonialism that continues to strip them of their homes, their land, and their dignity.
To portray them as individuals who simply “read the Quran one day and decided to jump into jihad” is to grossly misunderstand their reality. This interpretation stems from a vacuum of understanding, fueled by anti-Islamic biases that obscure the true nature of their resistance.
The British decision to sanction Palestinian land to Jewish settlers, a move with no legal or moral right, continues to fuel the conflict. The systematic ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and the ever-expanding borders of Israel are a direct result of this original sin. Without acknowledging this, any discussion of the Palestinian resistance is incomplete and inherently flawed.
To truly understand the Palestinian resistance, we must see it through the lens of those who suffer under occupation—not through the sanitised narratives presented by media, intellectuals, or politicians.
Yahya Sinwar’s defiant death is not an isolated event, but a symbol of the ongoing struggle of the Palestinian people, much like Tipu Sultan’s final stand against British forces centuries earlier. Both men refused to bow to colonial oppressors, choosing death over submission.
As we continue to discuss the Palestinian struggle, we must remember that real understanding comes from engaging with those who are living the experience—not from distant pundits who seek to simplify the complexity of human suffering for the sake of their own agendas.
Only by understanding the deep, systemic nature of the Palestinian catastrophe can we begin to appreciate the resistance for what it truly is: a fight for survival against an ongoing apartheid.
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