The Archbishop’s Misleading Remarks Ignored the Brutality of Hamas

Archbishop Justin Welby’s recent remarks about Palestinian Christians in Gaza—particularly his lament, “How many more stories of families, homes, and communities destroyed must we hear before this senseless killing ceases?”—are as misguided as they are concerning. At a time when the realities of Gaza are desperately in need of clarity, the Archbishop has chosen to perpetuate a narrative that ignores the brutal reality of Hamas’s reign, instead implying that Israel bears the primary responsibility for the suffering of Palestinian Christians.

Let’s dispense with the ambiguity: Hamas is a terrorist organization with genocidal ambitions, not merely an adversary of Israel. Its goals are not confined to the destruction of the Jewish state; its charter explicitly calls for the eradication of Jews and the establishment of an Islamist theocracy. But even that is not the full picture. Hamas is not a lone actor; it is a proxy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has long sought to expand its influence through proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah, and others. Iran’s ultimate aim is to reshape the region—and ultimately the world—into its fundamentalist vision, where both Jews and Christians are the targets of its theocratic expansion.

The Archbishop, however, chooses to focus his grief on the violence in Gaza without once mentioning Hamas’s role as the brutal enforcer of Tehran’s ambitions. To lament the destruction in Gaza while conveniently omitting Hamas’s reign since 2007 is not just irresponsible—it is outright dangerous. Hamas, backed by the Islamic Republic of Iran, bears direct responsibility for the suffering of both Muslims and Christians in Gaza. Under Hamas’s despotic rule, Christians have endured persecution, harassment, and violence simply for practicing their faith, while Jews have been relentlessly targeted by rockets, terror tunnels, and—most horrifically—by the barbarism we witnessed on October 7.

On that dark day, Hamas unleashed unspeakable atrocities. Hundreds of Israeli civilians were butchered, homes were stormed, families were taken hostage, and many suffered unimaginable torture and execution. Men, women, and children were kidnapped, dragged through the tunnels built by Hamas for terror, not defense. The true face of Hamas’s inhumanity was laid bare for the world to see—its intent to annihilate not just Israel, but all that stands in the way of its Islamist agenda.

By failing to mention the scale of Hamas’s brutality, the Archbishop not only ignores the realities on the ground but also offers a narrative that dangerously obscures the true perpetrators of terror.

Archbishop Welby’s remarks reflect a troubling willingness to overlook the uncomfortable truth: Hamas does not simply oppose Israel. It opposes the entire Judeo-Christian world. Its war is not just against Israel, but against the very existence of both Jews and Christians. The Archbishop’s statement overlooks the reality that Hamas’s genocidal ambitions are a direct reflection of Iran’s will. Tehran’s desire to export its brand of Islamist extremism goes far beyond Israel’s borders. It seeks nothing less than the total destruction of the Judeo-Christian heritage in the Middle East and beyond.

By failing to recognize this, the Archbishop not only misrepresents the conflict but also feeds into a dangerous narrative. His remarks risk echoing ancient tropes—long-standing accusations that unfairly place the blame for suffering on the Jewish people. The suggestion that Israel is the primary cause of Christian suffering in Gaza is an all-too-familiar distortion, one that ignores the very real and present threat of Hamas’s theocratic agenda.

And yet, Archbishop Welby’s remarks offer no acknowledgement of this reality. Instead, he advances the tired, discredited narrative that Israel is to blame for the suffering in Gaza. This is not merely an omission—it is a grave distortion. Gaza has been under Hamas’s control since 2007, during which time it has become a hub of terrorism and violence. Israel, far from being an occupier, withdrew from Gaza in 2005, hoping for peace, only to see the region turned into a launchpad for rockets and theocratic tyranny.

Hamas, of course, does not operate in a vacuum. It is Tehran’s willing puppet, funded and armed by the Islamic Republic of Iran, whose goal is nothing short of regional domination through the export of its radical Islamist ideology. Iran’s ambitions are not limited to Israel; its fundamentalist regime seeks to erase all traces of Judeo-Christian civilization from the region, seeing both Jews and Christians as obstacles to its vision of Islamist supremacy.

It is this context that the Archbishop completely misses—or chooses to ignore. By focusing his criticism on Israel, he plays into the dangerous and enduring narrative that somehow, the Jewish state is responsible for all the region’s ills. This echoes the age-old blood libel, where Jews were scapegoated for the suffering of others, a narrative that is now being repackaged to fit the modern conflict. To speak in such terms, especially in light of Hamas’s actions and Iran’s ambitions, is not only inaccurate but profoundly reckless.

The suffering of Palestinian Christians is real, and it deserves serious attention. But to lay the blame at Israel’s door, while ignoring the brutal realities of Hamas’s rule and Iran’s influence, is to turn a blind eye to the true sources of their oppression. Hamas and Iran’s theocratic extremism is the real threat to Christians in Gaza, just as it is to Jews in Israel and beyond.

The Archbishop’s compassion is admirable, but it is woefully misplaced. Real peace, real justice, will only come when we confront the reality of Hamas’s genocidal intent and Iran’s imperial ambitions. To pretend otherwise, as Archbishop Welby’s comments do, is to allow the true perpetrators of violence and hatred to escape responsibility.