Tel Aviv has opted for an unheard of (until now) way to greet commuters on one of its highways – by mounting a gargantuan billboard showing Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh clad in a bikini and his chest adorned with a lei. A no less curious detail is that he is shown carrying a suitcase bursting of cash.
The image of Haniyeh, apparently on a sun-soaked vacation on the sea coast, is captioned in Arabic, with the text placed directly over the Hamas leader’s head, and can be translated as follows:
“Thank you Israel, I love you. Ismail”, with the line underneath saying:
“Enough being scared. Demand victory for Israel”, the text reads, thereby calling on the government to end its policy of appeasement toward Hamas.
The billboard is the brainchild of the Israel Victory Project, a Middle East Forum (MEF) initiative looking to “steer US policy toward backing an Israeli victory over the Palestinians to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict”, according to the website.
The calls, as well as the idea in general, appear to have struck a chord with many netizens, as many applauded the stunt:
One user even referred to MEF’s choice of imagery as a “deadly combo of mockery with painful truth”.
…while others gave the project a decent and sincere laugh:
Members of the MEF, which has a caucus in the Knesset as well as in the US Congress, say the outspoken initiative was designed to coincide with the arrival of a Hamas delegation in Iran; Haniyeh asserted on Sunday that the group was “expecting important results” from the Tehran meeting.
According to the Israel Victory Project’s Facebook page, the billboards are meant to increase “pressure on Israel’s next government and the security establishment to end the policy of appeasement”.
The campaign at large is expected to include a series of polls and research, events and rallies, as well as other activities meant to convince Israelis to demand that the government put “an Israeli victory” first, the campaign said.
“Israel has forgotten how to win since Oslo. In return for handing out bags of cash to jihadis, Israeli children must run to bomb shelters. Our campaign speaks to the Israeli public that is fed up with ‘conflict management' and ‘mowing the lawn’”, added Gregg Roman, the forum’s head in charge of the campaign.
Hamas, which has been de facto controlling the Gaza Strip since 2007, is defined by Tel Aviv as a terrorist organisation, and has been accused of carrying out illegal attacks against Israel. The group rejects the classification, referring to its attacks as acts of defence and resistance. Gaza's border with Israel saw increased tensions in March 2018, when locals began a mass campaign dubbed the “Great March of Return” along the border with Israel. This spring, the IDF carried out a series of airstrikes on the area, while Hamas and other militants responded by launching makeshift rockets and arson balloons at southern Israel. A recent ceasefire was signed on 6 May, facilitated by Egyptian mediators, but the standoff persists.