Hamas: A history lesson

Editor's note:

This episode of On Point did not meet our editorial standards. It is paramount to acknowledge when our work falls short of our standards.

This program featured Khaled Hroub, a professor at Northwestern University in Qatar and a research associate at the Centre of Islamic Studies at the University of Cambridge. Professor Hroub has written multiple books about Hamas and was on the program to provide a factual history of the Islamist group. The program was live and as it progressed, Professor Hroub expressed doubt that women and children had been killed by Hamas in its October 7 attack on Israel.

On Point Host Meghna Chakrabarti countered with statements of fact to correct the record. But that does not negate the impact of hearing Professor Hroub's statements. On Point strives to contribute thoughtfully to the public discourse, and in an environment where misinformation is both rampant and dangerous, we felt compelled to pull this hour of our programming from national distribution after its initial broadcast.

The Palestinian organization Hamas, created in 1987, gained support because it took up armed resistance against Israel. They also got into politics.

"Hamas continued to rise, building its support and its success on the failures of others, be they the Israeli government and the Palestinian national movement," Khaled Hroub says.

In 2006, they ran for office.

"That was a turning point when they participated in the Palestinian elections and they won them, surprising everybody, including maybe the movement itself," Hroub says.

Now, Israel has vowed to put an end to Hamas.

"Let's assume that Hamas is crushed. Where should all these groups go? The weapons, the people, the leaders," Hroub says.

"So I think they will regroup under another new name, more extreme, more radical, if you like."

Today, On Point: The history and future of Hamas.

Khaled Hroub, professor at Northwestern University in Qatar.

Michael Eisenstadt, director of the military & security studies program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.