A stark resemblance is evident between Ismail Haniyeh's public reaction to the elimination of his three terrorist sons, which appeared cold and emotionless – horrifying many observers – and Iran's overt threats to attack Israel. Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has advocated such a stance publicly for years, praising "martyrs" and "martyrdom."
"The culture of martyrdom means self-sacrifice for long-term goals," Khamenei has emphasized, providing insight into Iranian doctrine for those seeking to understand it.
Khamenei's confidant, senior Revolutionary Guards official Ali Shirazi, has also expounded on the spread of this ideology and veneration of "martyrs" globally, stating "Looking at the Islamic world, we see the culture of the Islamic Revolution has reached all countries and Muslims worldwide, explaining why the love of martyrdom is spreading. This is thanks to the blood of martyrs..."
Martyrdom, or Shahada, is an Islamic oath and creed, but among Sunni Palestinians, it has become an honored religious status for terrorists killed attacking Jews and other "infidels" – espoused by Hamas and its allies in the Palestinian Authority. The former PA mufti, Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, declared years ago that "the Muslim loves death and martyrdom, just as the Jews love life."
This ideology has formed the basis for Hamas, Iran, and their PA partners to indoctrinate thousands of terrorists, who – inspired by rulings of the late prominent scholar Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi and senior Al-Azhar officials – sanctify death when it facilitates killing Jews and harming them.
Haniyeh's reaction, combined with 30-year-old footage of his late son Hazem as a boy voicing his desire for "martyrdom," should therefore come as no surprise, as it reflects this deeply entrenched doctrine.
Illustrating this, the father of terrorist Amjad al-Jundi, who was killed attacking a soldier, reacted by calling his son a "guide to Al-Aqsa." Umm Muhammad Shamasneh, whose son died in a Jerusalem bus bombing, lamented he did not let her join the attack, expressing hope her other children would become "martyrs."
Palestinian mothers who struggle to celebrate rather than mourn the death of their sons, where maternal instinct overrides ideology, face pressure to conform. In some cases, Dr. Ronit Marzan's research found, sedatives were administered to "martyrs'" mothers, barring them from bidding farewell to their sons before burial.
As Israel weighs its response to an unprecedented Iranian strike and whether to escalate against the new Nazis in Gaza, the enemy's veneration of death and its implications must be recognized. A bereaved Israeli mother who lost a loved one mourns with hope he should be the last casualty. Whereas a Palestinian mother of a terrorist rejoices, eagerly awaiting more "martyrs."
