Natan Galula
Times of Israel, Apr. 24, 2024
“October 7 ‘seeps to the depths of my soul’”
One of the most passionate voices in support of a large-scale Israel Defense Force operation to clear Hamas from its last major stronghold in the Gaza Strip’s southernmost city of Rafah comes from a man raised by the terrorist organization.
Mosab Hassan Yousef, the disowned son of a Hamas co-founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef, told The Times of Israel last week that the Israeli government must “finish the job” in Gaza to remove Hamas from power, regardless of the unfolding situation with Iran. “We need to go into Rafah now. Not tomorrow. What are we waiting for? We finish Rafah, we finish Hamas. This will remove them from power, which will be the first step [toward peace],” he said.
The 45-year-old was born in Ramallah and vividly remembers the foundation of Hamas in 1986. Decades ago, Yousef was dubbed the “Green Prince” (also the title of a 2014 documentary based on his autobiography) for his efforts to help Israel’s internal security agency, the Shin Bet, in thwarting terror attacks during the Second Intifada in the early 2000s.
After saving countless lives in those harrowing days, he has developed a “fundamental relationship” with the Jewish people, albeit not without bumps along the road.
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