This article is taken from the November 2025 issue of The Critic. To get the full magazine why not subscribe? Get five issues for just £25.
I am so disappointed in Hamas. As the Middle East’s foremost progressive activist group, you would think they would know better than to agree to a “peace deal” whose architect is none other than Donald J. Trump. By aligning with that tyrannical pumpkin-hued fatberg, Hamas has well and truly lost the moral high ground.
Have they forgotten about Trump’s “grab ’em by the pussy” comment? Or his executive order banning trans people from the military? Or his endless memes featuring Democrat politicians in sombreros and fake moustaches? I’m starting to think that Hamas fighters aren’t the intersectional feminist LGBTQ+ allies we thought they were.
Of course, nobody wants to see the violence continue, but that’s why this peace deal is so distressing. Yes, it means that the war will technically “stop”, but it also means that Trump will get the credit. Given the choice of continued military action or giving Trump a boost in the polls, I have no doubt that most Palestinians would prefer the bombs.
It’s so sad to see this kind of internalised Islamophobia on display
It is true that following the announcement of the deal, there were scenes of jubilation on the streets of Gaza. Crowds were seen cheering, waving flags and setting off fireworks. It’s so sad to see this kind of internalised Islamophobia on display.
Have any of these Gazans stopped to think about what this means for people like me? For the past two years we have been marching through London, wrapped in our keffiyehs and Palestine flags. What are we meant to do with our weekends now? I simply cannot fathom the sheer selfishness of it all. Was Greta Thunberg even consulted?
Of course, my fellow activists and I will continue to protest against Israel’s genocide, which it has cunningly prolonged by issuing warnings to civilians before military operations and handing out millions of food parcels. But there is a real risk that if there is a lasting peace our marches might end up seeming redundant and self-serving.
By ending the war, the far right is trying to scupper our peace movement by leaving us with nothing left to protest about. For the sake of all of those on the right side of history, we mustn’t let them succeed.
