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47 Minutes
I watched the raw footage of the 7.10 atrocities Hamas committed in Israel; Here’s what I saw
47 Minutes
I don’t know how many of you are aware of ‘the video’; I can assure you that if you say “47 minutes” to any Israeli today, they’ll know exactly what you’re referring to.
After 7.10, the IDF collected countless hours of real-time footage of the atrocities taken by Hamas terrorists, victims, and security cameras. They compiled the footage into a 47-minute video, showing some of the most horrific moments from the attacks.
What is shown there only amounts to 10% of those murdered on that day. The video is being shown to journalists and diplomats worldwide. Some left mid-film due to its hard content, many were crying, and
some reported feeling sick or experiencing nightmares. Members of the Israeli Knesset have seen it, and
many were later seen sobbing.
I watched it last week, along with 30 fellow UK journalists.
I want to share my experience.
The Banality of Evil
We arrived at the Israeli embassy for the ‘screening’. Our phones were taken and we were requested not to detail specific scenes out of respect for the victims and their families. What struck me most was what Hannah Arendt defined as “The Banality of Evil” when writing about Adolf Eichmann.
Secretary Blinken, after watching the film,
talked about one part so I will tell of it as well.
A terrorist threw a grenade into a shelter where 2 small boys and their father were hiding. The father jumped on the grenade to save his boys. When the boys were taken back home by the terrorist, he opened the fridge and demanded a drink. He grabbed a bottle of coke as if it was the most natural thing in the world. As if he didn’t just murder a father in front of his sons. As if two small injured children were not just sitting there begging for their lives.
More than the horror footage of dozens of people being killed in the most gruesome ways, what made me dread was the sheer enjoyment the terrorists were showing. They took selfies, they proudly called their parents, and they laughed while shooting defenseless women taking cover.
This is hate and cruelty I’ve never thought I would witness. Hate and cruelty I didn’t know any human could carry. Israelis always knew that their enemies wished them harm. I doubt anyone, even those who were the most hawkish in their views toward Hamas, thought that such ville monsters were merely a few miles away.
A Denial Campaign
When the screening was over, we didn’t quite know what to do. No one had anything to say so we just sat there for a few moments until people started to disperse. I saw some
later wrote about their experience. I’m sure no one left there exactly the same as they went in.
There’s a
debate in Israel about whether to make this film public. We’re facing an unprecedented campaign
denying the atrocities of 7.10 almost in real-time. Despite that, Israel, so far, has been determined not to share the footage with the wider public.
I think it’s the right choice.
This film is not meant to be a way of convincing people of how this war is just. The horrific acts of Hamas are known, and many similar videos are already available. Those who wish to deny what happened will use these 47 minutes to support their claim regardless of what’s shown, that most were filmed by the terrorists themselves, regardless of those being real people on screen with real families.
This video should be used as evidence, and someday also as an historical reminder. A reminder of pure evil and limitless cruelty.
Until then, if you are interested in reading and seeing more about what happened on 7.10, I can recommend these sources of information:
https://oct7map.com
https://hamas-massacre.net
https://october7.org
I watched the raw footage of the 7.10 atrocities Hamas committed in Israel; Here’s what I saw
eladsi.medium.com
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