Western anti-Israel activists are increasingly defending — and in some cases celebrating — Hamas’s public executions of Gazans accused of collaborating with Israel, framing the killings as acts of wartime “justice” following last week’s ceasefire and partial Israeli withdrawal.

The executions, carried out in Gaza City and other areas under Hamas control, were broadcast across Palestinian media over the weekend. Videos showed bound and kneeling men shot dead in public squares as crowds watched. Hamas claimed the victims were traitors aiding Israel.

But the justification for the killings has taken on a new, disturbing tone abroad. Prominent Western activists, influencers, and self-described “anti-Zionists” have echoed Hamas’s narrative, portraying the executions as legitimate punishment for betrayal — and tying them to the death of pro-Hamas influencer Saleh Al-Jafarawi, who was reportedly killed in Gaza during clashes with the Doghmush clan.

The killings began shortly after the ceasefire took hold. According to Gaza journalist Motasem A. Dalloul, Hamas mobilized to “clean house” by targeting critics and rivals. In a post on X, Dalloul repeated Hamas’s accusations that the executed men were Israeli collaborators — but also accused the group itself of stealing aid, attacking civilians, hoarding goods, and kidnapping rivals.

Despite the brutality of the crackdown, Western supporters of Hamas have embraced the executions online. British doctor Rahmeh Aladwan, a National Health Service employee, wrote that “every single one” of the “collaborators must face justice.” Former MMA fighter Jake Shields, an open antisemite, added, “These people betrayed their nation and the penalty for treason is death.”

Even groups under Western sanctions have praised the killings. The Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network — sanctioned by the U.S., Canada, and Israel for its ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine — posted approval on X, describing the executions as part of Gaza’s “resistance.”

Activists have drawn parallels to post–World War II reprisals against Nazi collaborators. “The French and Dutch did the same thing,” former Marine intelligence officer Scott Ritter wrote on X. “Snitches get stitches — or a bullet to the head.”

Activist Benjamin Rubenstein compared the killings to actions by Jewish resistance fighters in the Warsaw Ghetto, writing, “Betrayal in the face of genocide? Bullet to the head. History doesn’t lie, but Zionists do.” Journalist Richard Medhurst called the executions “a universally understood law” of wartime occupation.

Much of the rhetoric centers on Saleh Al-Jafarawi, a Gaza-based pro-Hamas social media personality, who was killed earlier this month. Pro-Hamas activists allege that Israel ordered his assassination through local collaborators, despite no public evidence to support the claim.

The Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) and National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) both repeated the accusation, describing Jafarawi’s death as part of Israel’s “war on journalists.” NSJP’s Sunday post went further, urging followers to “fight Zionism in all its forms — from the IOF [IDF] to its collaborators,” adding, “Death to the occupation. Death to all collaborators.”

Meanwhile, Gazans who question the executions have been branded as traitors themselves. The group Arabs of Conquest accused respected Gaza photojournalist Motaz Azaiza of “treason” after he described recent clashes between Hamas and clan militias as “civil war.”

“Those who incite against the resistance are active agents of division,” the group wrote on Instagram. “Motaz and his dogs have the blood of Saleh on their hands.”

Another activist network, The Sameer Project, added that “anyone part of Fatah is a Zionist collaborator,” underscoring the widening scope of Hamas’s campaign against internal critics.

Analysts warn that the silence — and in some cases, applause — from Western pro-Palestinian organizations has given Hamas political cover to continue its campaign of extrajudicial killings.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)