Hamas co-founder’s son warns of terrorist group's indoctrination of children in Gaza
Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of Hamas co-founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef, delivered a powerful address at the United Nations this week, condemning the actions and ideologies of Hamas. His speech focused on the terror attacks by Hamas, particularly against Israeli civilians, and the indoctrination of Gaza’s population, especially children.
Yousef, with his unique perspective as a former Palestinian child within the Hamas culture, criticized the group’s genocidal intentions and their aim to build an Islamic state without regard for political borders.
“We’re talking about a religious group that does not believe in political borders and wants to annihilate an entire race in order to build an Islamic state. I don’t know what else can be said about this — and I don’t know why it is not obvious to everybody,” he said, as reported by The Jerusalem Post.
His 2010 book, Son of Hamas, details his journey from a Hamas insider to a critic and informant for Israeli intelligence. He recounted his personal experiences of indoctrination and abuse as a child, emphasizing Hamas’ primary goal to annihilate the State of Israel.
The former Hamas member described a harrowing incident from his childhood, where he was tied and whipped by a Hamas leader for disobedience, illustrating the group’s brutal methods of discipline and indoctrination. Yousef’s public denouncements of Hamas have been ongoing, including his participation in media events and NGOs, such as his 2017 speech for UN Watch at a U.N. Human Rights Council debate.
Yousef also addressed the broader implications of Hamas’ actions on future generations.
“Hamas’ first crime against children in the Palestinian societies is not arming them or encouraging them to carry suicide bombing attacks — it’s the religious ideological indoctrination that I had to go through with one intention in mind: to annihilate the State of Israel. This is Hamas' primary goal,” Yousef said.
He emphasized that blaming Israel does not address the root of the problem, which lies in Hamas’ indoctrination and criminal activities against children and society.
Yousef’s work with Israel's security services helped thwart several terrorist attacks planned by Hamas, CBN News noted. Defecting from Hamas in the late '90s, Yousef, who converted to Christianity, has since dedicated his efforts to exposing Hamas’ true nature.
Yousef referred to an interview with Piers Morgan on his “Uncensored” talk show, where he expressed his frustration with the misrepresentation of the Palestinian struggle by external pro-Palestinian activists, asserting his own legitimacy as a representative of Palestinian children’s interests.
“We don’t want a Palestinian state; I don’t want a Palestinian state. Palestinian children need education, they need security, they need life. This is what they need; they don’t need another corrupt Arab regime,” Yousef told Morgan.
Yousef’s stance is not isolated within his family. In July 2019, his brother, Suheib, also fled Hamas, denouncing it as a terror organization. Suheib’s comments highlighted the grip Hamas has on Gaza, maintaining power by force and creating problems for the region. “The problem in Gaza is that Hamas hangs on to power by force. If Hamas gave up power, there would be no problems,” Suheib said at the time.
