"I could never strangle a baby!" (Forest Rain) ~ Elder Of Ziyon

Monday, February 24, 2025

"I could never strangle a baby!" (Forest Rain)

By Forest Rain

"I could never strangle a baby!"

Many around the world began to grasp the depth of Gazan depravity when it was revealed that baby Kfir Bibas, just 10 months old, and his four-year-old brother Ariel were brutally murdered by Gazans (not just Hamas) while being held hostage in Gaza sometime in November 2023. The Bibas children were taken alive, along with their mother Shiri, during the “Al Aqsa Flood” invasion of Israel on October 7, 2023.

Other children—and even babies—were slaughtered in the attack. Other mothers were taken hostage and forced to watch their children suffer. Other fathers lived through the devastation of being unable to protect their families. But the Bibas family's horror was caught on camera. We saw it happen—live, in living color.

The depravity Gazans unleashed on Israel was not new. We have witnessed it before: the cold-blooded murder of babies, the rape of women, the beheading of men, people torn apart with bare hands. What set this apart was the magnitude—and the location: Israeli kibbutzim within the pre-1967 borders.

This horror should not have been a surprise. But for many, the kidnapping, murder, and mutilation of the Bibas children was an ice-cold bucket of water, shocking them awake to the evil on Israel’s borders.

And that awareness is a good thing. To address reality, we must first recognize it.

For decades, we all pretended that Arabs didn’t really mean what they said when they declared their intent to wipe Israel off the map. But Hamas, Fatah, Gaza, and the Palestinian Authority have always been clear. Their charters, their education systems, their religious institutions—every aspect of their society is not built to uplift themselves but to destroy the Jewish state. Their goal is to turn Israel into “Palestine.”

Now, many of those recently awakened to the depth of this depravity have realized that this threat to Jewish life cannot be allowed to continue. The existential threat to Israel is not just a threat to Jews—it is a threat to Christians, to the Western world, to civilization itself.

And that awareness is a good thing. To address reality, we must first recognize it.

This understanding has led many to declare that Gaza—Hamas—is Amalek. That Amalek must be destroyed.

With this, I agree.

But some take it further, arguing that Gaza and Hamas are not human—that they are a mutation, a different species, something we could never be.

With this, I vehemently disagree.

That statement makes me angry. Really angry.

I had to think hard to understand why. And then it hit me: because to address reality, we must recognize it. And getting this wrong puts our lives in danger. I have had enough hostage-taking and brutal terrorism for a lifetime. We cannot live like this anymore.

Who Was Amalek?

Amalek originates from Esau, the twin brother of Jacob. According to Genesis 36:12, Amalek was the grandson of Esau through his son Eliphaz and a concubine named Timna. This makes him a direct descendant of Isaac and Abraham, just like Jacob (Israel).

The Amalekites first attacked the Israelites in Exodus 17:8-16, striking the weak and weary as they fled Egypt. Because of this cowardly, unprovoked evil, the Torah commands Israel to remember Amalek and wipe out his memory. Amalek represents the embodiment of pure evil—the enemy that targets the defenseless and seeks the destruction of the Jewish people.

Since then, genocidal Jew-hatred has been understood as a recurring manifestation of Amalek. Haman, the Nazis, Hamas—all are embodiments of this spirit of Amalek.

At the same time, Jews and Arabs share a common ancestor: Abraham. The Jewish people descend from Jacob (Israel), while Arabs trace their lineage to Ishmael, the son of Abraham and Hagar. Meanwhile, Amalek comes from Esau, Jacob’s brother. Whether tracing from Esau or Ishmael, both Jews and Arabs ultimately come from the same grandfather.

Evil Is a Choice

The Torah teaches that all people are created in the image of God. It explains our shared ancestry, but it also makes something else very clear: some people choose evil.

Gaza’s culture has created an evil society—one that glorifies death, thrives on violence, and is ruled by fear. This cannot be fixed. Like Amalek, it must be wiped out.

But that is not to say that Gazans are inherently different from birth. They are not a genetic mutation.

If any of us were raised in their society—exposed to their education, media, and religious indoctrination—we would be just like them.

It is comforting to believe otherwise. Comforting to think that we are superior by nature, that we could never fall to such depravity. Comforting to believe that we could never strangle a baby.

Who wants to wrap their mind around that horrible, revolting image? But that false comfort blinds us to the true source of danger.

The difference between us and them is not in individual human potential. The difference is in society, values, and culture.

We are not superior as individuals. But we ARE superior.

We are superior because our culture is superior.

They do not believe they are doing evil. They believe they are doing good. That is a hard thought to swallow, isn’t it?

We have a different understanding of good and evil because, even those of us who are not religious live by the laws and values of the Torah.

We choose life—they choose death.

We build—they destroy.

That is what makes us different. That is why we cannot become like them. That is why we couldn’t strangle a baby.

But if we lived in the society of Amalek—we could.

And only if we understand this can we make the changes necessary for survival.

Because the society of Amalek cannot be allowed to live. If it does, we won’t.