The Isle of Man’s Tynwald is going to consider a motion spreading disinformation, and which would have the effect – if implemented – of keeping the Hamas terror regime in power.

There are several key reasons that Tynwald should oppose the proposed motion:

  • The motion tries to frame the dispute as one between Israel and the people of Palestine. This is false and factually wrong. The hostilities are between Israel, which is a democratically-elected nation, and Hamas, a terrorist rape regime.
  • Hamas has come to power, and retains power, by murdering domestic political dissidents. It is an illegitimate body and a proscribed terrorist organisation. Peace can only be achieved when it is removed from power, in the same way that Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan were defeated.
  • The motion’s attempt to be balanced between the Hamas terror regime, and the democratically-elected Israeli Government is foul. One has used mass rape as an instrument of war, while the other defends its citizens. These are not morally equivalent.
  • Hamas uses force to capture civilians – including children – and to hold them as hostages. Israel uses force to free civilians – including children – and to stop them being held as hostages. These are not morally equivalent.
  • Hamas has a policy of killing as many Israeli and Palestinian civilians as possible. Israel has a policy of harming as few Israeli and Palestinian civilians as possible. These are not morally equivalent.
  • The opening reference to “all hostages” – in a motion that MHK Faragher reportedly helped to draft – might be an allusion to the vile comments by Faragher in an interview on 6 November 2023 on Manx Radio, where she referred to wanting the release of hostages “on both sides”. Drawing an equivalence between the victims of the mass rape and hostage-taking of 7 October, and people who have been charged and convicted of terrorism by a democratic government under the rule of law is vile and beneath Tynwald.
  • The motion’s reference to the Israeli Government’s actions as “indiscriminate attacks on Gaza” is a fundamentally false claim which disqualifies the motion. The WHOLE POINT of the ground invasion of Gaza was PRECISELY TO AVOID indiscriminate attacks! This clause reveals that the people who drafted the motion are fundamentally ignorant about the hostilities that are underway in the area. The Israelis are very clearly putting their own soldiers in harm’s way as part of their effort to reduce collateral damage to civilians.
  • Far from being indiscriminate, Israel is achieving unprecedented success in military effectiveness relative to civilian deaths. While clearer counts will come to light after the conclusion of the fighting, global urban warfare experts have already reported that the ratio of civilians killed is “historically low for modern urban warfare”. After all, civilian deaths are more likely to happen when countries like the United Kingdom and the USA bombed Mosul from afar.
  • While the motion calls for international intervention and the establishment of aid corridors – which Israel has already established – the motion lacks a clear emphasis on the need for durable peace negotiations directly between the conflicting parties. The international community’s role should not only be to alleviate the immediate humanitarian crises but also to facilitate a lasting peace that addresses the core issues of the conflict.
  • The motion fails to call on the terrorist rape regime of Hamas to surrender and to be removed from governance in the area.
  • This motion fails to make mention of the core aspect of the conflict that actually relates to the Isle of Man: the fact that a ship owned by a Manx company was hijacked by the Houthis (allied to Hamas), and their crew was also taken hostage. The failure to address the aspect of the conflict that actually relates directly to the Isle of Man reveals that the proposers are not concerned over the genuine interests of the Isle of Man.

Michael Josem is a long-term consumer advocate, most prominently as a global leader in combating fraud in the online gambling industry. He was in part the inspiration for the 20th Century Fox Movie, Runner Runner, starring Ben Affleck and Justin Timberlake.

Josem has over a decade of experience as a senior business leader working across various high-tech and online industries, and takes action to build a better community. His primary volunteer roles include service for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, and Graih, the homelessness charity.