Should Malaysians stop romanticising Hamas despite shared religion?

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Malaysians are urged to stop romanticising Hamas despite shared religion because the group’s tactics and civilian-targeting are described as morally problematic.
The view put forward is that Hamas is often romanticised by Malaysians, and that this should stop even when there are shared religious ties. The reasoning is that Hamas operates in a moral grey area, including tactics such as using children as human shields and setting up bases in civilian-dense areas like hospitals and schools, alongside rockets described as having the intent to kill civilians. The same framing also argues that Israel has security rights during rocket attacks, but that does not erase the need to judge Hamas by its actions rather than by religion.
Hamas is portrayed as using tactics that increase civilian harm
Hamas is described as engaging in controversial tactics that have drawn criticism worldwide, including picking up children to act as human shields as they race across streets from Israeli fire. It is also described as setting up bases in civilian-dense areas such as hospitals and schools. The stated intention in this framing is to maximize civilian casualties, and high civilian casualty counts are portrayed as providing Hamas with a PR victory.
Rockets are characterised as targeting civilians, not only military targets
The rockets launched by Hamas are described as having the clear intent of killing civilians. This is presented as part of why the conflict should not be viewed through sentiment alone. In this framing, the label of “romanticised” is tied to a mismatch between how Hamas is seen and what Hamas is said to do.
The peace process is portrayed as requiring recognition of Israel and mutual concessions
The discussion shifts from tactics to the broader peace process, describing it as ambiguous in responsibility and often blamed only on Israel by Malaysians. Israel is said to be uncooperative in the peace process due to insistence on building settlements in the West Bank, while the current Israeli government is described as fragile and right-wing, including a ruling coalition component like the Jewish Home party that could be uninterested in peace. However, the core barrier is described as Palestine, especially Gaza, not recognising the Jewish state of Israel, and the article points to a 2000 Camp David Summit “Peace-for-Land” offer to Yasser Arafat that was turned down, leading to the Second Intifada.
Malaysians are asked to prioritise Palestinian lives over religious affinity
The position advanced is that Malaysians should realign priorities toward saving Palestinian lives and livelihood by assessing realities and applying pressure objectively. It also explicitly states that Malaysians should refrain from supporting Hamas purely because they are Muslims. The argument concludes with a claim that with Israeli settlement building, key concessions must be made for there to be a Palestinian state and Palestinian people, reinforcing the call to judge actions rather than shared identity.

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Should Malaysians stop romanticising Hamas despite shared religion?

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