Editing Hamas (section)

===Attacks on civilians===
[[File:HAMAS suicide bombing in Jerusalem on 25 February (DoS Publication 10321).png|upright|thumb|Aftermath of 1996 [[Jaffa Road bus bombings]] in which 26 people were killed]]

Hamas have committed massacres targeting Israeli civilians. Hamas's most deadly suicide bombing was an attack on a [[Netanya]] hotel on 27 March 2002, in which 30 people were killed and 140 were wounded. The attack has also been referred to as the [[Netanya suicide attack|Passover massacre]] since it took place on the first night of the Jewish festival of [[Passover]] at a [[Passover Seder|Seder]].

Hamas has defended suicide attacks as a legitimate aspect of its [[asymmetric warfare]] against Israel. In 2003, according to Stephen Atkins, Hamas resumed suicide bombings in Israel as a retaliatory measure after the failure of peace talks and an Israeli campaign targeting members of the upper echelon of the Hamas leadership.{{efn|'This ceasefire ended when Israel started targeting Hamas leaders for assassination in July 2003. Hamas retaliated with a suicide bombing in Israel on 19 August 2003, that killed 20 people, including 6 children. Since then Israelis have mounted an assassination campaign against the senior leadership of Hamas that has killed 13 Hamas members, including Ismail Abu Shanab, one of the most moderate leaders of Hamas. ... After each of these assassinations, Hamas has sent a suicide bomber into Israel in retaliation.'{{sfn|Atkins|2004|p=123}}}} but they are considered as [[crimes against humanity]] under international law.<ref>{{cite web |author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |url=https://www.refworld.org/country,,HRW,COUNTRYREP,ISR,,3dc9379d4,0.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130416012248/http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,HRW,COUNTRYREP,ISR,,3dc9379d4,0.html |archive-date=16 April 2013 |title=Refworld &#124; Erased In A Moment: Suicide Bombing Attacks Against Israeli Civilians |publisher=UNHCR |access-date=27 March 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Saarnivaara|first=Minn|title=Suicide Campaigns as a Strategic Choice: The Case of Hamas |journal=Policing|volume=2|issue=4|pages=423–33|year=2008|doi=10.1093/police/pan061}}</ref> In a 2002 report, Human Rights Watch stated that Hamas leaders "should be held accountable" for "war crimes and crimes against humanity" committed by the al-Qassam Brigades.<ref name="hrw.org-bombing">[https://www.hrw.org/reports/2002/isrl-pa/ISRAELPA1002-05.htm#P735_169095 Erased In A Moment: Suicide Bombing Attacks Against Israeli Civilians] V. Structures and Strategies of the Perpetrator Organizations, [[Human Rights Watch]], October 2002. {{ISBN|1564322807}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2007/06/30/indiscriminate-fire-0 |title=Indiscriminate Fire, Palestinian Rocket Attacks on Israel and Israeli Artillery Shelling in the Gaza Strip |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=30 June 2007 |access-date=27 May 2010 |archive-date=24 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100524155207/http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2007/06/30/indiscriminate-fire-0 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2007/08/28/civilians-under-assault |title=Civilians under Assault, Hezbollah's Rocket Attacks on Israel in the 2006 War |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=28 August 2007 |access-date=27 May 2010 |archive-date=24 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100524155118/http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2007/08/28/civilians-under-assault }}</ref>

In 2008, Hamas leader [[Khaled Mashal]], offered that Hamas would attack only military targets if the IDF would stop causing the deaths of Palestinian civilians.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1206632372365&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080609190105/http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1206632372365&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=9 June 2008 |title=Mashaal offers to cease civilian attacks |access-date=1 June 2016}} 31 March 2008, ''The Jerusalem Post''</ref> Following a 19 June 2008, ceasefire, the al-Qassam Brigades ended its rocket attacks and arrested Fatah militants in Gaza who had continued sporadic rocket and mortar attacks against Israel. The al-Qassam Brigades resumed the attacks after the 4 November Israeli incursion into Gaza.<ref name="ITIC"/><ref name="ynetnews.com"/>[[File:Nova_massacre_dashcam.jpg|thumb|The 2023 [[Re'im music festival massacre]] left 364 people dead with many others wounded or taken hostage]]
During the [[2023 Hamas attack on Israel]], Hamas infiltrated homes, shot civilians en masse, and took scores of Israeli civilians and soldiers as hostages into Gaza.<ref>{{cite web |last=Debre |first=Isabel |date=8 October 2023 |title=Israeli hostage crisis in Hamas-ruled Gaza becomes a political trap for Netanyahu |url=https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-military-prisoners-hostage-hamas-soldiers-e75729364f8c0b453da272365c16d136 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014211944/https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-military-prisoners-hostage-hamas-soldiers-e75729364f8c0b453da272365c16d136 |archive-date=14 October 2023 |access-date=15 October 2023 |publisher=AP News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Gold |first1=Hadas |last2=Murphy |first2=Paul P. |last3=Salma |first3=Abeer |last4=Dahman |first4=Ibrahim |last5=Khadder |first5=Kareem |last6=Mezzofiore |first6=Gianluca |last7=Goodwin |first7=Allegra |date=8 October 2023 |title=Hamas captures hostages as Israelis share photos of those missing |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/07/middleeast/hostages-hamas-israel-gaza/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231014210614/https://edition.cnn.com/2023/10/07/middleeast/hostages-hamas-israel-gaza/index.html |archive-date=14 October 2023 |access-date=15 October 2023 |publisher=CNN}}</ref> According to [[Human Rights Watch]], the deliberate targeting of civilians, indiscriminate attacks, and taking of civilians as hostages amount to [[war crime]]s under international humanitarian law.<ref>{{cite web |date=9 October 2023 |title=Israel/Palestine: Devastating Civilian Toll as Parties Flout Legal Obligations |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/10/09/israel/palestine-devastating-civilian-toll-parties-flout-legal-obligations |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231009202840/https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/10/09/israel/palestine-devastating-civilian-toll-parties-flout-legal-obligations |archive-date=9 October 2023 |website=[[Human Rights Watch]]}}</ref> During its October 2023 offensive against Israel, Hamas massacred 364 people at the [[Re'im music festival massacre|Re'im music festival]], while abucting others.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/death-count-from-massacre-at-reim-music-festival-reportedly-updated-to-364-a-third-of-oct-7-deaths/|title=Death count from Re'im music festival massacre reportedly updated to 364 — a third of Oct. 7 fatalities|work=The Times of Israel|date=17 November 2023|access-date=20 November 2023}}</ref><ref name="Morris2023">{{Cite news |last1=Morris |first1=Loveday |last2=Piper |first2=Imogen |last3=Sohyun Lee |first3=Joyce |last4=George |first4=Susannah |date=8 October 2023 |title=How a night of dancing and revelry in Israel turned into a massacre |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/08/israel-festival-attack-gaza-militants/ |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008200354/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/10/08/israel-festival-attack-gaza-militants/ |archive-date=8 October 2023}}</ref> During the same offensive, it also was reported that Hamas had massacred the population of the [[Kfar Aza]] kibbutz.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lubell |first=Maayan |date=10 October 2023 |title=Bodies of residents and militants lie in the grounds of ravaged Israeli kibbutz |publisher=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/bodies-residents-militants-lie-grounds-ravaged-israeli-kibbutz-2023-10-10/ |access-date=10 October 2023}}</ref> About 10 percent of the residents of the [[Be'eri]] kibbutz were killed.<ref>{{cite news |title=10 Percent of Kibbutz Population Found Dead After Hamas Massacre in Southern Israel |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-10-10/ty-article/.premium/10-percent-of-kibbutz-population-found-dead-after-hamas-massacre-in-southern-israel/0000018b-191c-df31-a99f-7ddf54fa0000 |work=Haaretz |date=10 October 2023}}</ref> Hamas militants attacked the [[Psyduck music festival massacre|Psyduck festival]], that took place near kibutz Nir Oz, killing 17 [[Israelis|Israeli]] partygoers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ntieb |first=Arnold |date=10 October 2023 |title=לא רק ברעים: המסיבה הנוספת בדרום שמשתתפיה טרם שבו הביתה |trans-title=Not only in Re'im: The participants of the other southern festival who did not come back |url=https://www.maariv.co.il/news/military/Article-1043995 |access-date=20 December 2023 |website=maariv |language=he}}</ref> Video footage shows children being deliberately killed during the kibbutz attacks,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Carroll |first=Rory |date=23 October 2023 |title=Israel shows footage of Hamas killings 'to counter denial of atrocities' |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/23/israel-shows-footage-of-hamas-killings-to-counter-denial-of-atrocities |access-date=26 October 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> as well as what appears to be an attempt to decapitate a living person using a garden hoe.<ref>{{Cite news |date=23 October 2023 |title=Israel shows Hamas bodycam attack footage to journalists |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67198270 |access-date=26 October 2023}}</ref> Forensic teams who examined bodies of victims said many bodies showed signs of torture as well as [[Sexual and gender-based violence in the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel|sexual and gender-based violence]], and testimonies to this effect were also collected by Israeli police.<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 November 2023 |title=Israel investigates an elusive, horrific enemy: Rape as a weapon of war |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/11/25/israel-hamas-rape-sexual-violence/ |access-date=4 December 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=The Scope of Hamas' Campaign of Rape Against Israeli Women Is Revealed, Testimony After Testimony |language=en |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-11-30/ty-article-magazine/.highlight/hamas-campaign-of-rape-against-israeli-women-is-revealed-testimony-after-testimony/0000018c-2144-da36-a1de-6767dac90000 |access-date=4 December 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=15 October 2023 |title=Israeli forensic teams describe signs of torture, abuse |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israeli-forensic-teams-describe-signs-torture-abuse-2023-10-15/ |access-date=4 December 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Israeli Police Collect Eyewitness Testimony of Gang Rape During Hamas Attack |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-11-08/ty-article/israeli-police-collect-eyewitness-testimony-of-gang-rape-during-hamas-attack/0000018b-b025-d3c1-a39b-bee5ef400000 |access-date=4 December 2023 |work=Haaretz |language=en}}</ref> Haaretz later reported that forensic pathologists who examined bodies of the victims taken the Shura Base for identification found "no signs on any of those bodies attesting to sexual relations having taken place or of mutilation of genitalia." Not all bodies could be fully examined given the lack of forensic pathologists, and for some conclusions could not be drawn given their deteriorated state.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rozovsky |first=Liza |date=18 April 2024 |title=15 Witnesses, Three Confessions, a Pattern of Naked Dead Bodies. All the Evidence of Hamas Rape on October 7 |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-04-18/ty-article-magazine/witnesses-confessions-naked-dead-bodies-all-the-evidence-of-hamas-rape-on-oct-7/0000018e-f114-d92e-abfe-f77f7e3f0000 |access-date=28 November 2024 |work=[[Haaretz]]}}</ref> Israeli forensic pathologists in charge of the process clarified later that all bodies had been examined, and some were disfigured or burned.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Mor |first1=Zohar |last2=Kugel |first2=Chen |last3=Mizrahi |first3=Hagar |last4=Kaliner |first4=Ehud |date=November 2024 |title=Mass killing during terror attack at the Israel-Gaza border and the role of the Ministry of Health in identification of human remains and their release |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39128201/ |journal=Forensic Science International |volume=363 |pages=1 |doi=10.1016/j.forsciint.2024.112188 |issn=1872-6283 |pmid=39128201 |quote=Bodies were delivered to a central mortuary. Each body was coded and undressed for external inspection and documentation of physical elements... Whole-body CT was performed in cases the bodies were disfigured or burned from the second week}}</ref> Some of the testimonies were later proven to be false.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Grim |first1=Ryan |last2=Boguslaw |first2=Daniel |last3=Scahill |first3=Jeremy |date=29 February 2024 |title=Between the Hammer and the Anvil: The Story Behind the New York Times October 7 Exposé |url=https://theintercept.com/2024/02/28/new-york-times-anat-schwartz-october-7/ |access-date=1 April 2024 |work=[[The Intercept]]}}</ref><ref name="beri-false">{{cite news |last1=Grim |first1=Jeremy |last2=Scahil |first2=Ryan |date=4 March 2024 |title=Kibbutz Be'eri Rejects Story in New York Times October 7 Exposé: "They Were Not Sexually Abused" |url=https://theintercept.com/2024/03/04/nyt-october-7-sexual-violence-kibbutz-beeri/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=The%20Intercept%20Newsletter |access-date=7 March 2024 |work=[[The Intercept]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=22 May 2024 |title=How 2 debunked accounts of sexual violence on Oct. 7 fueled a global dispute over Israel-Hamas war |url=https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-sexual-violence-zaka-ca7905bf9520b1e646f86d72cdf03244 |access-date=25 August 2024 |work=[[AP News]] |language=en}}</ref> Detailed reports by the UN and ''[[The Times]]'' concluded that Israel's claims about the scale and formally sanctioned, systematic nature of sexual assaults did not stand up to scrutiny.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mission report - Official visit of the Office of the SRSG-SVC to Israel and the occupied West Bank 29 January – 14 February 2024 |url=https://www.un.org/sexualviolenceinconflict/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/report/mission-report-official-visit-of-the-office-of-the-srsg-svc-to-israel-and-the-occupied-west-bank-29-january-14-february-2024/20240304-Israel-oWB-CRSV-report.pdf |access-date=5 March 2024 |publisher=United Nations Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict}}</ref><ref name="OHCHR3">{{cite report |url=https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session56/a-hrc-56-26-auv.docx |title=Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel |author=Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory |date=12 June 2024 |publisher=Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights |access-date=23 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240829134953/https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session56/a-hrc-56-26-auv.docx |archive-date=29 August 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Weiniger">{{Cite web |last1=Philp |first1=Catherine |last2=Weiniger |first2=Gabrielle |date=7 June 2024 |title=Israel says Hamas weaponised rape. Does the evidence add up? |url=https://www.thetimes.com/magazines/the-times-magazine/article/israel-hamas-rape-investigation-evidence-october-7-6kzphszsj |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241008030639/https://www.thetimes.com/magazines/the-times-magazine/article/israel-hamas-rape-investigation-evidence-october-7-6kzphszsj |archive-date=8 October 2024 |access-date=11 August 2024 |website=[[The Times]]}}</ref>